Water Droplets of Memory
by Teshgirl
Summary: Ami Mizuno has longed for one man only. But, will their memories of each other disappear due to the spirit of a previous enemy of the Senshi?
1. Prologue: Stars Reborn

Hi, this is Tesh! This is my first ever fanfic, and I hope you enjoy it. I decided to focus the story on Ami because I had this Idea to use her since 2004! I love ALL the Senshi, but I just… y'know. XDI'm using a mixture of charries from the manga and anime, though I'm sticking mostly with the manga story. Also, I'm not sure yet, but I may make up some OCs too!

Disclaimer: I do not own _Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon _characters, or the original story in the manga and anime. My story is original, but it does not hide the fact that Sailor Moon is the property of Naoko Takeuchi-sama.

Charries and environment © Naoko Takeuchi

Story © Tesh

Thanks for reading!

Tesh : )

**Water Droplets of Memory**

_Prologue: Stars Reborn_

The Galaxy Cauldron. A shimmering mass of light big enough to fit hundreds and thousands of Sailor Crystals and Star Seeds. The place where stars were born.

Inside the Cauldron, Usagi Tsukino, known as Princess Serenity in her past life and Neo Queen Serenity in her future life, finally found her lover Mamoru Chiba, known as Prince Endymion and King Endymion in his past and future life, through the sparkling mists. As Usagi wept with joy when he held her, her friends gradually appeared in front of her.

"...Everyone?" Usagi's cerulean eyes widened. She saw the people whom she fought with together, who joked with her, who loved her. Usagi's eyes overflowed, and she glided over to them. They all wore flowing white silk slips, with the exception of Mamoru, who wore a flowing white silk shirt and equally white pants.

She sobbed as she held each of her friends. They smiled, unable to stop their tears as well.

"Usagi...," said a voice behind her. Usagi turned and her heart filled with happiness.

The Crown Princess of Crystal Tokyo smiled softly, her red eyes twinkling. Mother and daughter faced each other, and their hands clasped.

The keepers of the Silver Moon Crystal, the Golden Crystal, the Pink Moon Crystal, and their Senshi were filled with an indescribable ecstacy. It was true- they were together again, and they would be reincarnated once more. The Battle with Galaxia and Chaos was over.

Before their Star Seeds would shoot off into the galaxy through time and space back to Earth, Usagi made a wish- that she and her friends could be normal citizens in Tokyo. In peace.

Time passed. Seconds became minutes, minutes became hours, days became weeks, weeks became months, and months became years. Sailor Pluto, the Senshi of Time, could see from her post at the Gateway of Time that Usagi's everlasting, holy wish came true.

And so the Senshi lived on, including the first dear friend Usagi met, Sailor Mercury.


	2. The Senshi and the Detective

_Chapter 1- The Senshi and the Detective_

_She ran through the streets of Tokyo, racing after a thief. The thief turned suddenly and __pointed a silver pistol at her. He fired. The bullet was inches from her chest when someone __dashed in front of her, taking the bullet. To her horror, it was..._

"Urawa-kun!" Ami Mizuno bolted upright from her small bed. The dream again...

The bright sunlight peeked out through the closed blinds in her room. Ami climbed out of bed and opened them. The light illuminated the pale blue sheets of her bed, her dark blue walls decorated with a water pattern, and photographs of her friends.

Ami stepped over to her white dresser and looked into her mirror. Her kind face smiled back at her: large, blue-black eyes, slightly pale skin, and pink cheeks. Her blue hair was the color of water, which it fell a little past her shoulders. When she was younger her hair was shorter, but now she was twenty-two and decided to change her appearance.

The young woman still lived in the Juban area of Tokyo. She had always dreamed about becoming a doctor just like her mother. However, she realized that she still loved to serve justice to wrongdoers like she did as Sailor Mercury. She chose a different career path, and instead became a Tokyo police officer.

Keeping her identity safe, she still transformed into Sailor Mercury to fight especially hard to capture criminals. She remembered one of her most recent adventures…

--x--

_"Sailor Mercury, you've done it again," Chief Kana, the Chief of Police, said gratefully, as he __handcuffed a car hijacker._

_"It was no trouble at all," Ami replied cheerfully, happy to have helped._

_As soon as she said this, a man dressed in black and armed with a knife leaped out of the window of a tall office building nearby, falling straight toward a small group of young schoolchildren. The little boys and girls screamed with terror._

_Eternal Sailor Mercury sprang into action. Drops of water and ice gathered around her as she __spun gracefully with her arms slowly rising into the air._

"Shine Aqua Illusion!_" Mercury shouted, releasing a star of water and ice at the man. The ice __and water crusted around him, and he fell like a rock toward the Tokyo streets. Ami led the __children out of harm's way, and with a resounding thud the armed man slammed into the ground. __Immediately the police surrounded him._

_"Thank you, Mercury-chan!" the young boys and girls exclaimed gratefully._

_The Senshi of Water smiled, and the wind ran through her hair as she leaped into the air with __ease, her work as a Senshi being completed for the moment._

--x--

Ami changed into a light blue sundress and sandals. Today was Saturday, and she was off duty. She was going to meet with Usagi, Rei, Mako, and Minako to have a picnic lunch in a park together, with their respective families, during the warm summer day.

"I wonder what Urawa-kun is doing now…," Ami wondered aloud. Then she sighed, having no knowledge of Urawa-kun's life since junior high.

The blue-haired young woman left her seventh floor apartment, descended down the elevator, walked through the main corridor, and departed.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

His desk was crammed with reports and paperwork, old cups of coffee, pens, paperweights, and snacks. On the wood-paneled walls were certificates signed with incomprehensible characters. The wood fan overhead spun rapidly, but it was not enough in the stifling room. Outside through the single tiny window, the streets of Tokyo hummed.

Ryo Urawa sat at his desk with his feet up, dosing. It had been a long day, even though he was only on the job for three hours.

The door slammed open. "URAWA!"

Ryo snapped to attention. "C-Chief-san?"

The Head Detective of Tokyo folded his arms, glaring down on Tokyo's youngest detective. "Stop sleeping and get to work! I expect these reports by _noon!_" Detective Keiji stormed off.

Ryo sighed and stared blearily at his stack of paperwork with his piercing dark eyes, willing it to be done.

Ryo was an unusual young man. Ever since he was a young boy, had a strange power- he could see the future.

This power proved to be a blessing and a curse. It allowed him aid with the most advanced of Japan's placement tests when he was a teen. However, it also allowed him to foresee a bleak future before he changed into a beast, when he discovered as a teen that he possessed one of the seven Rainbow Crystals.

Thankfully, the plans of the wicked warrior of the Dark Kingdom, Zoisite, were foiled, thanks to Sailor Mercury.

"Mizuno-san…," Ryo said aloud, and he blushed with embarrassment even though no one heard.

Ryo's powers grew as he grew older. He could now see the past as well. Furthermore, his new power was so strong that it allowed him to see days in ancient history.

Both of his powers were controllable. He could see the parts of the past and future that he wished to see. Thus, he wanted to use his ability to help people, and became a detective. Of course, he kept his powers secret.

Ryo was content with his job- he made enough yen to live comfortably in an apartment in downtown Tokyo. He stayed in touch with his mother, who lived in the outskirts of Tokyo.

The detective looked at his paperwork again and picked up his beautiful, decorative blue pen. It was adorned with swirling water pattern.

_Sailor Mercury..._

Ryo shook himself. "Get it together, Urawa! There's work to be done!"

_Mercury..._

Ryo tried to force himself to work, but his thoughts kept drifting away.

_Ami._

He remembered his admiration for the Girl Genius from afar. Mizuno-san was always polite and kind when she spoke with him. He remembered their first conversation outside of cram school in the morning, ready to begin exams…

--x--

_Fourteen-year-old Ryo scrambled to his new cram school on Saturday, extremely stressed. It __was his first day, and he wanted to make a good impression on his new professor and classmates._

_The spring rain drenched him; he had forgotten to bring an umbrella. "Never leave home without __an umbrella," his mother, Erika, always said. He wished he had listened._

_He splashed through the sidewalks and crossed the busy Juban streets safely. He was almost __there._

_He finally made it, and dashed up the steps. However, he collided with a girl holding a blue __umbrella. Textbooks, papers, and their schoolbags flew everywhere._

_"Ah no! I'm _so _sorry!" Ryo exclaimed. He hurried to gather the girl's things and helped her up._

_Her hand felt soft and cool. And her eyes were such a rich shade of blue that he found himself __getting lost in them. The girl's blue hair grew wet in the rain, but it looked natural, as if she was __part of the water._

_"It's all right," the girl said kindly. "Are you okay?"_

_"I-I'm fine."_

_"Oh! I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Mizuno. Ami Mizuno."_

_"Ryo Urawa." He was dying to touch her hand again, and his wish came true when they shook __hands._

_Mizuno-san pushed a lock of her short wet hair behind her ear. "Nice to meet you, Urawa-kun! I __hope you like this cram school. Who knows- we may even be in the same class!"_

_Her bright smile warmed him, even in the cold rain._

--x--

Ryo leaned back in his chair, reminiscing wistfully at the memory. He remembered after meeting Mizuno-san he tried to find out as much as he could about her. He realized that they both went to the Juban Municipal Junior High, and he was amazed when he discovered that she was at the top of Japan's achievement exams.

He had acquired a scrap from a newspaper article with a black and white picture of Mizuno-san. A little later, when he had transferred to Juban Junior High during the few months he lived in the Juban area with his mother, Mizuno-san's friend Tsukino-san gave him a comical candid color photograph of Mizuno-san eating a cheeseburger. Ryo still had it, and treasured it.

Ryo had dreamed of telling Mizuno-san how he felt after he performed higher than her in exams. However, life got in the way when he had to move with his mother after he told Mizuno-san, when he discovered that she was Sailor Mercury.

The detective sighed again, took a sip of coffee, ran a hand through his dark brown hair, and finally got to work.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Far far away from Earth, Sailor Cosmos glided through the galaxy, fluttering her ivory-colored angel wings. She glowed in a silver light, and her flowing sailor-fuku was white. Two long, white pigtails fluttered from her two heart-shaped odango. Sailor Cosmos was the ultimate separate entity of Sailor Moon.

The beautiful Sailor Senshi patrolled the millions of solar systems across the universe from afar. It appeared that all were safe and at peace.

Sailor Cosmos rested on a small asteroid, happy that the galaxy was secure, thanks to Sailor Moon and her four guardian Senshi.

The soldier did not see the thick red bolt of lightning shoot toward her. She turned quickly to raise her long, slender white scepter topped with a winged orb to protect herself, but she was too late. Cosmos was imprisoned a red fire-colored orb, her scepter having slipped out of her hands spun off into space.

Sailor Cosmos's silver eyes widened in shock as she beat frantically against the shell of the indestructible fireball. Then she trembled when she saw who had imprisoned her.

"_…Galaxia?_"


	3. Discoveries

Quick Note: Many ideas for part of this chapter are from _Parallel Sailor Moon_, in case you've never heard of it. Hee, I wish it was available in English. XD -Tesh : )

_Chapter 2- Discoveries_

"Aaaami-chaaan!" Usagi Chiba called to her friend. Usagi held a bundle in her arms that hindered her from running over to Ami, so she waved instead. Her golden hair was in its two customary odango, though her two long pigtails were styled into loops.

"Ami!" Ami's other friends and fellow Senshi called to her as well. They were all the same age as Ami, with the exception of two teens.

"Hi, guys!" Ami greeted, running over to them. Her sundress fluttered.

Usagi switched the bundle to her right arm so she could hug Ami. Inside, a chubby baby with pink fuzz and sparkling red eyes was gurgling happily. Beside Usagi was a girl that resembled a young teen with equally pink hair and red eyes, who waved cheerfully. On the other side of Usagi was her husband Mamoru-san. His deep blue eyes shone in the bright summer sun as he hugged Ami.

Ami giggled. "Chibi Usa-chan, are you taking good care of... yourself?"

Chibi Usa giggled as well. "Yup, me and Hotaru-chan have! We've been kinda too busy studying though- high school entrance exams and all." Chibi Usa adjusted her oval, red-rimmed glasses. Behind her, her also bespeckled best friend Hotaru Tomoe waved briefly before she beckoned for Chibi Usa to sit with her, heavy textbooks awaiting them. "Gotta go for a sec, Ami-chan!"

Ami smiled before she turned to the rest of her friends. The inseparable Chibi Usa and Hotaru were influenced by Ami, and thus they aspired to become scholars themselves and study abroad. Usagi was very proud of her future daughter, though it was a little amusing seeing the future Chibi Usa and the baby Chibi Usa side-by-side.

"Oh, almost forgot!" Chibi Usa said, turning away from her studies briefly to talk to Ami. "Ceres, Pallas, Juno, and Vesta said hi from the Thirtieth Century!"

Ami told Chibi Usa to return the future Princess's guardian Senshi's greeting, and then sat next to Rei, the Senshi of Fire, and her husband Yuuichiro Kumada.

Rei and Yuuichiro had married very early, after they realized their feelings for each other. Unfortunately, Rei's grandfather passed away recently, so Rei and Yuuichiro managed the Hikawa Shrine on Sendai Hill together.

Ami chuckled when she remembered Rei's initial hatred for men, but as she looked at her friend, her husband, and their beautiful three-year-old son Haruki, she felt happy for Rei-chan.

Rei flicked her very long raven hair behind her shoulder and smiled at Ami, who smiled back.

"Hey, Ami-chan, taste my pastries!" Makoto said to Ami cheerfully, offering a fat, cream-filled cake.

The Senshi of Thunder had always pined for the sempai who broke her heart when she was a teen. Thus, Ami was extremely thrilled when the senior and Mako-chan fell for each other again.

Mako's husband lived with her for two years before they married. She just opened a small bakery and flower shop, just like she always dreamed of. Mako's daughter just turned one; she had her mother's bright green eyes.

Ami accepted the pastry and took a bite. Delicious, as always.

Minako sat near Ami, her little light blue boombox emanating the latest idol cd.

The boy-crazy Senshi of Love met her boyfriend Alan in England, where she fought evil previously as Sailor V. Alan became a television producer for a famous company, so he was always in the presence of celebrities when he permanently moved to Japan. He helped his girlfriend acquire the autographs of her favorite idols.

Alan and Minako were engaged to be married in the fall, and Minako was pregnant with their first child, whom they found out would be a boy.

Minako-chan winked at Ami and pushed her light blonde hair behind her ear- she grew tired of her long hair and had it cut short to a tiny bit past her face, though she still wore her trademark red bow. She reached for a sandwich, her tattoo of a winged heart on her right shoulder in plain view.

Haruka, Michiru, and Setsuna had to miss the picnic. Michiru had to be absent because she was giving violin performances abroad. Haruka, with her husband and fellow race car driver, could not attend as well because of a big grand prix in the United States. Setsuna was single like Michiru because Setsuna had no time for men, being a busy biologist and in addition a pediatric nurse at Chibi Usa's old elementary school. She had to do paperwork today.

Ami ate happily with her friends, laughing and reminiscing about their early Senshi days.

Usagi laughed her high, bubbly laugh when she exclaimed, "Remember when Rei-chan used _Fire Soul_ when we were trapped in a barrier? Remember? Ami-chan had to play chess against Berthier-chan!" Berthier was one of the four Phantom Sisters of the Black Moon, who eventually became their friends.

Rei glared at Usagi. "I didn't do it on purpose!"

"Yes you did!"

"Did not!"

"Did!"

"Did _not!_"

"_DID!_"

"Hrmph!" the two girls said in unison, turning away from each other in a huff.

Everyone chuckled- one of the many feuds of Usagi and Rei.

Ami turned away from the spectacle when Minako tapped her on the shoulder. "Ami-chan, guess what I heard?"

"What?"

Minako-chan grinned. "Remember Urawa-kun, who went to your school? He moved back to downtown Tokyo and he's a detective now!" Minako waved a newspaper article in front of Ami, who took it.

" 'Ryo Urawa, Tokyo's youngest detective... is doing a superb job...,' " Ami whispered.

Minako grinned widely again. "Soo... gonna ask him out?"

Ami started, and then blushed. "I-I don't even know if he remembers me!"

"You never know! Ooh, look- the article has his address!"

Ami looked down with her hands in her lap. "...Do you really think I should see him?"

Minako nodded.

"Ah, Ami-chan whatcha talkin' about?" Usagi asked, her mouth stuffed with a rice ball.

Ami blushed again. "Oh, just some things..."

That got the attention of all her friends.

"You're so lucky, Ami-chan," Hotaru said wistfully, "I wish I had a guy too!"

Mako whapped Ami on the shoulder, grinning. "Ow!" was Ami's reply.

Rei glared at the ground. "Men, hmph." Yuuichiro looked crestfallen, but then Rei flushed and leaned against him.

Usagi giggled and exclaimed, "Time to play matchmaker!"

Ami's blue-black eyes widened. "Usagi-chan, n-no...!"

But Usagi already copied down Urawa-kun's phone number from Minako's article and gave it to Ami. "If you don't call him, I'll do it myself!" she laughed.

Ami was stunned that her friends were so... _thrilled _for her. _For me? _Ami thought, her cheeks tinged with pink. She felt so grateful that she had such wonderful friends. However, as she looked at the many lovely relationships the other girls had, she felt a stab of jealousy.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ryo finally finished work at five p.m., earlier than closing time, and departed, with Detective Keiji breathing down his neck. Ryo sighed.

He hopped into his car, a silver Hyundai Elantra, and left for home. He would change quickly, because he was going to meet his mother for dinner at a nice restaurant near her home. _I wonder why Mother wanted to see me? _Ryo thought curiously.

After a quick change into more casual clothes, a black Polo shirt and blue jeans, Ryo hopped into his car again.

As he drove, his thoughts drifted again to Mizuno-san...

--x--

_Ryo stood on Platform 7 at the train station, determined. He had to find his father, the man who left his wife and five-year-old son so long ago._

_His train would arrive in fifteen minutes, so he decided to grab a bite to eat at a little McDonald's inside the station. He wheeled his suitcase out of the platform behind him._

_He thought about his mother's tears from her bruises. He thought about how roughly his father handled his son. So many memories... which he wished had never come to pass._

_Ryo moodily ate his burger and fries. Then he smiled a little when he remembered how proud his mother was when she found out how high he placed in the advanced student national exams._

"_How do you do it, my sunshine?" Erika often said to him. She had called Ryo "sunshine" the moment he was born. The light of her life._

_Ryo was glad his mother was proud of his achievements, but he always considered himself a fraud due to his mysterious power. He felt like a cheater. And his powers recently made him change into a fearsome beast and almost made him kill Mizuno-san. _No- Sailor Mercury_, Ryo thought._

_He slightly came out of his reverie when he remembered the letter that appeared out of the blue, addressed to him. From his father. The letter told him where Ryo's father was, and how he apologized for his terrible behavior. He wanted his son to see him, and stay with him for a couple of weeks._

_Ryo wasn't sure if he trusted his father, but he was still curious... He was very young when his father left after all._

_He finally snapped out of it when the train station's intercom crackled to life. "_Passengers boarding on Platform 7 out of Tokyo, please begin to board the train._"_

_Ryo stood and left the Golden Arches. He walked through the busy station to Platform 7. There was someone there, but the person wasn't boarding the large, silver train._

_Ryo walked closer and realized it was... Mizuno-san. He flushed a little._

"_Urawa-kun! I heard that you were leaving," she said. There was an odd look in her eyes._

"_Y-yeah, but I'll visit, along with Mom," he replied reassuringly. Ryo's mother was preparing to move out of the Juban area, though not to be with Ryo's father._

"_Okay."_

_They stood in silence for a moment. During that time, Ryo wondered if the look in her eyes was... longing, but he quickly quashed the idea. Why would someone as wonderful as Mizuno-san long for the person who almost killed her?_

_He had to board the train. He placed a foot onto the first step and then turned._

"_M-Mizuno-san, I'm so sor-"_

"_It's all right... Ryo-kun." Mizuno-san smiled her heart-melting smile again, and there was a twinkle in her eye._

"_Mizuno-san..."_

"_Please, call me Ami."_

"_A-Ami-san...," Ryo flustered, and then he smiled. He could call Mizuno-san by her given name..._

"_Oh, and one more thing." Ami-san pulled something out of the pocket of her school uniform's skirt, and handed it to him._

_Ryo stared at the photo of Ami-san, much nicer than the candid snapshot that Tsukino-san gave him._

"_It's much better than the picture Usagi-chan gave you, right?"_

_Ryo blushed. How did she know that?_

"_Please stay clear of the doors- the train is about to depart." The conductor came from behind Ryo to tell him._

"_Goodbye, Ryo-kun," Ami-san said, sadness in her voice._

"_No," Ryo replied, "See you later, Ami-san." He smiled warmly, feeling light and free._

_The train doors closed, and he was off._

--x--

Ryo's heart fluttered at the memory. He still possessed the photograph of Mizuno-san, along with the candid snapshot as well. It made him love Mizuno-san even more.

_Love..._

"I wish I could see her again," he said aloud. After he left the Juban area with his mother to go to a different school, he lost touch with Mizuno-san, even though he visited once. He didn't even know if she still lived in Tokyo.

He finally arrived at the outskirts of Tokyo, and he headed toward the restaurant. He parked and stepped inside.

"Ryo!" his mother called. The youthful-looking Erika Urawa wore a white blouse and knee-length red skirt. She embraced her only child. Ryo had inherited her piercing dark eyes.

Ryo greeted his mother and they found a place to sit. After they ordered their food and received their drinks, Erika tossed her thick shoulder-length brown hair behind her shoulder and looked pensive.

"Mother?"

Ryo's mother looked up and smiled. "Ryo, dear, I've been noticing that when you talk to me on the phone that you sound... lonely. What's wrong?"

Ryo was startled. "Everything's fine, Mother!"

Erika didn't look convinced.

The waitress brought their food and they dug in.

Erika stared at her son and said, "Sunshine, have you been thinking of Mizuno-san?"

Ryo was halfway through raising his white rice with his chopsticks to his mouth when he dropped them.

"M-Mizuno-san?" Ryo stuttered, and his face reddened.

Erika smiled knowingly. "Mothers' instinct." She pulled out a newspaper clipping and handed it to her son.

Mizuno-san's kind face smiled up at him from it, being one of many. It was a photo of the Tokyo Police Department. Her face was easy to point out because she was one of the few female officers.

"Mother, when did you get this!" he exclaimed.

"Oh, in the paper a few months ago."

"_Months?_ Why didn't you tell me?"

Ryo's mother grinned. "You should try to get in touch with her. How about looking in the phonebook?"

Ryo looked down at the photo. He wanted to see her again...

"Yes. I'll try to contact her."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Cosmos dropped to her knees, panting. She had tried to break the orb, but without her scepter her powers were slightly limited.

Galaxia, or rather a faint manifestation of the Senshi of Destruction to Cosmos, laughed harshly. She wore her sailor-fuku but it was a rusty bronze instead of gold, at least to Cosmos's eyes.

Cosmos glared, sweat poring down her face, which wet her beautiful hair. "Galaxia. I thought you were defeated by my past self, Sailor Moon."

One of Galaxia's faint eyes twitched. "Sailor Moon..."

She was interrupted by Cosmos's shout. "How did you survive? Why are you in the form of a spirit!"

Galaxia smiled- a sickly, honeyed smile. "It was a wish I made before I disintegrated. After all, the Galaxy Cauldron grants the wishes of a Sailor Senshi." She turned away. "Now if you excuse me, I'm off to give Sailor Moon a living hell."

"Wait! _Galaxia!_"

Cosmos beat on her confinement orb, but to no avail. _I have to let Sailor Moon and her Senshi know! s_he thought desperately.

Sailor Cosmos closed her eyes and used the last of her strength. She put the tips of her slender fingers to the sides of her head.

_Sailor Moon..., _Cosmos pleaded telepathically, _Please. Please rid the universe of Galaxia! We... need... y-_

The guardian of the universe collapsed.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Galaxia reached Earth, having traveled with tremendous speed.

_Excellent, I'm here_, she thought, touching down onto a skyscraper in Tokyo.

The spirit of Galaxia raised her arms, and a whirlwind of power surrounded her. Minutes later, a twenty-two-year-old young woman with medium-length deep violet hair and jet-black eyes stood on the building. Unlike the transparent spirit, Galaxia was flesh and blood.

_Earth, what a horrid place_, Galaxia thought with disgust. _No matter. It is time to make Sailor Moon, her Senshi, and Earth wish they never existed._

_But how to do it?_ She pondered.

_Ah._

Galaxia smiled, venom in her eyes.

"So it begins..."


	4. Mysterious Occurrences

9/19/06 Hey guys! Sry this took a little while; college has started up for me again, so I've been busy, -sigh-. Thanks for waiting! -Tesh : )

_Chapter 3- Mysterious Occurrences_

The next day before she went to work, Ami looked at Urawa-kun's phone number in Usagi-chan's messy handwriting, and then she slipped it into her uniform's breast pocket.

Ami left Sunset Apartments and climbed into her deep blue Lexus. It had taken _forever _for her to save the money to buy her dream car. However, it also helped that her mother was a wealthy doctor.

It took her about twenty minutes to get to the Tokyo Police Department.

"Hey, Mizuno-san!" her fellow officers called cheerfully to Ami when she entered. She smiled and waved. It seemed that it would be a very low-key day today.

"Ah, Mizuno, you're here," Chief Kana said, hurriedly stepping over to her, which wasn't in his nature. "We have a problem, and we need your smarts to help."

"Eh? What is it?"

The chief scratched his head. "It's _very _strange... come with me."

Ami followed her boss to his office. It was a splendid office- the walls were painted a pale gray with framed certificates, and included a large oak desk with a padded leather swivel chair, and two wide windows, which let in a cool breeze.

Chief Kana opened a manila police report folder. "Can you make any sense of this?" He passed it to Ami.

The report read as follows:

--x--

**Incident Report. File id: 1212867. Officer Kin.**

_I left the TPD around 4:08 pm on Saturday, July 10th _(_Yesterday_, Ami thought) _after receiving a call._

_I arrived on the scene in the Juban area at 4:18. A medium-sized crowd surrounded a teenage girl._

_The girl was sprawled on the ground in the middle of a street. She looked utterly lost._

"_Miss, are you alright?" I asked with concern._

_The girl merely looked at me. She couldn't speak. I assumed that she was nearly hit by a car, so I moved closer and started to call an ambulance._

_She looked up at me. Her dark eyes looked oddly blank, and her long, light brown hair began to flow._

"_Who... are... you?" the teen asked. She still had that odd look in her eyes._

"_Miss, it's alright, the paramedics are coming and-"_

_I did not finish speaking because she suddenly glared._

"_You... made... me... FORGET!" she shouted. She stood with no sign of trauma and charged toward me, a crazed expression on her face._

_Immediately I pulled out my gun, but she was too fast. It flew out of my hand, and the girl slammed me onto the ground with tremendous strength for someone so delicate. Furthermore, she had done it to me, an older man._

_The teen was about to land a crushing punch into my chest, when the hungry expression in her eyes faded._

_She collapsed._

_I had the paramedics come to the scene as fast as they could. The eyewitnesses were shocked._

_I have no idea what happened to this girl._

--x--

Ami's eyes widened. "What...?" she whispered.

The Chief wore a similar expression. "So, Mizuno, what do you think?"

_This is _very _bizarre... Wait! _Ami reread the report. _"Made me forget"...? _Ami thought hard. Then it came to her.

_A new enemy. I have to let the others know!_

"Chief-san, I-"

Chief Kana's gray phone rang.

"Kana here."

Ami watched her boss talk, apparently with another officer. Chief Kana's expression grew darker and darker as he conversed.

The chief turned to his officer and said, "We've got another one."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Before he went to work in the morning, Ryo flipped though his public phonebook, found Mizuno-san's phone number, copied it down, and put it in his breast pocket of his white short-sleeved button-down shirt.

When Ryo got to the office, it was alive with activity. Phones rung off the hook. Ryo's fellow detectives bustled to and fro with reports, and others typed frantically on their computers.

"W-what's going on?"

Ryo's boss turned, halfway through hanging up a phone. "Urawa, we've got trouble." For once he didn't sound gruff; he sounded concerned. _Very _concerned.

Immediately, Detective Keiji put Ryo and another detective to investigate a rather perplexing case.

From what he heard from his new partner, there were a growing number of cases in which people apparently "lost" something. After this happened, the victims grew alarmingly violent. The detectives were in a frenzy trying to discover what exactly _was _"lost."

Ryo thought hard as he went to his office as his female partner and recently new detective Yumi Leiko followed him.

He adjusted his tie and sat at his desk, and Leiko-san sat next to him.

Leiko-san drummed her lavender fingernails on the desk. "What do you think, Urawa?"

Ryo sighed. "Beats me. But we'll get to the bottom of it."

Leiko-san nodded. Then silence reigned as Ryo looked up files and reports on his laptop PC.

He grew frustrated. _Ack, nothing! I should use my powers... but not with Leiko-san here... It'll have to wait till I get home._

Ryo sighed again. "It looks like we're gonna need the police department to help._" Police department? Mizuno-san!_

Leiko-san frowned slightly and raised a violet eyebrow. "What're you smiling about?"

"Ah! Nothing important!" Ryo exclaimed, embarrassed.

Leiko-san still looked a little angry, and turned away. But she finally turned back to Ryo, her jet black eyes softening as she smiled. Her shoulder-length deep violet hair fell in waves. She was... quite pretty. Ryo blushed a little.

Leiko-san turned his attention back to the crisis by ruffling her notes and clearing her throat. However, her perfume was intoxicating, and her light lavender suit... It was a nice color on her...

"...Urawa?"

Ryo shook himself and concentrated. "So... who do you think is responsible for this?"

Leiko-san shrugged. "This case needs some serious research."

Ryo nodded in agreement.

_I wonder if Mizuno-san will be involved, when we team up with the police_, Ryo thought.

"Definitely."

Leiko-san fixed him with an odd look. "Definitely what?"

Ryo blushed and stammered, "O-Oh! I was just about a f-friend of mine that I used to know, M-Mizuno-san!"

"Ah. I see." Leiko-san still possessed that strange look, but she gradually stopped.

The hours ticked by, and they still had nothing by the end of the work day. The detectives grew frustrated, but there was always tomorrow.

Before Ryo and Leiko-san left the office at closing time, eight o'clock pm, Leiko-san stopped him before he opened the door.

"Urawa," she said, "I was wondering if... you could drive me home." She suddenly looked shy.

"Oh!" Ryo replied, surprised. Then he smiled. "Sure."

Leiko-san smiled as well.

As Ryo drove, he and Leiko-san had a friendly conversation.

"I'm a little nervous at the office, since I'm brand new," said the female detective. "I seem to be one of the few ladies there," she remarked.

"Don't worry, you'll get the hang of it. The guys at the office are nice guys."

"Like you."

Ryo flushed a little. "Oh, my mother taught me how to always be courteous, especially toward women."

Leiko-san giggled and then placed a hand on his arm. "I like courteous men."

"Uh... Leiko-san?"

Pink patches stained Leiko-san's cheeks. "My! I'm sorry! I... just haven't been around gentlemen in a long time."

"Aw, it's okay. Ah- we're here." Ryo pulled into Leiko-san's three-apartment building.

"Thank you, Urawa."

"No problem."

Leiko-san smiled and waved after she exited the car.

Ryo watched he leave, with an odd feeling. _She's very nice_, he thought. It was almost like she...

_Nah._

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yumi entered her second floor apartment, tired. Nothing was productive with today's new assignment.

_Of course._

She changed out of her suit and into more comfortable clothes.

_Well, the clothes _are _brand new._

Yumi collapsed on her couch and flicked on the local news. Reports of the mysterious phenomenon were all over the place.

_Heh._

Yumi slowly opened a door that supposedly led to her bedroom. Inside was...

Hundreds of elegant marble pillars stood around Yumi's height between the stone floor and ceiling in the wide, dark room. On top of each pillar was a small round hollow. Already, there were bright orbs of light the size of marbles on a handful of pillars, which brightened the room a bit.

Yumi grinned. "At this rate, those pathetic Senshi will definitely show up."

Galaxia picked up an orb lovingly and held it up, gazing at its light as it floated slightly above her hand.

"Starting with Ami Mizuno- Sailor Mercury."


	5. An Unexpected Encounter

11/17/06 Wow, I'm finally updating. O.o; I'm sorry 'bout that, folks. I've been _really _busy with school, and I joined 2 other fanfic sites, so I'm tryin to catch up there as well. On top of that I'm doing revisions, which included a _massive _change to the Prologue. Soo, I present chappie 4: )

_Chapter 4- An Unexpected Encounter_

Monday didn't prove to be productive with the mysterious crisis at the police department as well.

Ami sighed as she filed a report by a different officer who had investigated a crime scene. If only she was allowed to actually check out one of the scenes in person...

She did contact Usagi and the others last night when she arrived home. Rei immediately did a fire reading at the shrine, but she didn't get any results. Michiru, who had finally arrived home in Japan early this morning, used her mirror Talisman to try to find a clue, but that didn't provide any results either. Everyone grew discouraged when they met Sunday night at Ami's place to discuss the new enemy.

--x--

"_We should try to investigate one of the scenes secretly as Senshi," Ami said, using her mini Mercury computer to add data. Her friends nodded._

_Setsuna pondered, frowning, and said, "There's nothing unusual in the Time Space Continuum."_

_Chibi Usa informed everyone that there was nothing wrong in the Thirtieth Century as well._

_Makoto slammed a fist onto Ami's coffee table. "We've gotta figure this out! There's a growing number of attacks!"_

_Ami nodded with a frown on her lips, feeling Mako's anger._

_Usagi stopped stuffing herself with Mako's fresh donuts for a moment. She had a habit of eating during serious times. Then she said slowly, "What if it's... a previous enemy?"_

_Everyone's eyes widened. "...But how?" Hotaru inquired._

"_I don't know...," Usagi replied. "Yeah, I know it sounds crazy, but... that's something that's in my gut feeling, like there was a voice in my head..."_

"_Your mind is usually right," Rei said solemnly. "When I get back to the shrine, I'll do another reading."_

_Everyone agreed to meet again soon, and also agreed to investigate as Senshi when the next attack struck._

--x--

Ami sighed again. If only there _wasn't _a next attack...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Monday night Ryo left work frustrated yet again. Leiko-san had worked with him once more, and he slightly forgot the case when she asked him to drive her home. Ryo wondered why- he was quite sure Leiko-san had a car.

As they traveled along, Leiko-san asked, "So, Urawa, do you think that if we work with the police we'll finally get on top this?"

_Mizuno-san!_ "...We'll definitely need all the help we can get." Ryo replied, nodding grimly.

They fell silent. Finally they reached Leiko-san's abode.

"Thank you," she said gratefully. She leaned closer and asked, "Is it okay if I call you Urawa-kun?"

Ryo was startled, but then he smiled. "It's okay."

Leiko-san smiled too. "I'll see you tomorrow." She placed a hand on his shoulder before she left the car.

Ryo flushed a little and stared after her when she entered her home. Was it her perfume, or was he feeling lightheaded? He shook himself, and drove home.

After he talked to his mother briefly on the phone, discussing the difficult case, he ate some leftovers and moved to flick on the television.

_No- wait! My power! _Ryo thought suddenly._ I almost forgot to use it!_

The detective closed his eyes, letting his mind relax. His power was easy to control, but it required a sound mind.

Ryo's hair and clothes flowed as he began to glow in a white light. His back arched when he felt an overflow of power. A white light materialized from his forehead and shot up at Ryo's apartment ceiling.

Ryo stopped glowing and looked up at his ceiling. Pictures had appeared on the ceiling, almost like a television.

"Okay," Ryo said, "Let's see who's responsible for this."

The "screen" on his ceiling flickered, and then swirled.

"Black... with white sparks... It's space!" Ryo said with wonder. He looked closer... He saw a splash of white, and then gold, but it was too hard to make out. The image shifted to what appeared to be Tokyo. There was a splotch of violet in the scene... but suddenly the image flickered and faded.

"Eh?" Ryo's visions were not usually this blurry and vague. He wondered why. It was like there was some kind of interference...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Good. I was able to disturb him." Galaxia smirked. "My powers are far greater than Earthlings, _ha!_"

Galaxia walked into the great stone room again, her steps echoing against the hard walls. The number of orbs of light had grown. She ran her hands on the marble columns in the cavernous space as she walked through, caressing them. Each swirling marble of light was a spectrum of colors.

"When I get what I want from Sailor Moon, her Senshi, and all of Earth, I will get my revenge. Her planet will become a planet of war."

Galaxia spent several hours in the room, gazing at the orbs' splendor. Then she suddenly turned, her long, flowing gold and red hair shortening and changing to deep violet. Someone was knocking on her apartment door. She made sure her stone room's door was closed when she answered.

"What is it? I'm busy!" she snapped. Then she blinked.

Ryo Urawa was at her door.

"Sorry to bother you, Leiko-san, but you left your briefcase in my car. I just remembered after I got home in my apartment a little later."

"Oh. Thank you," Galaxia replied, still slightly surprised. Then her eyes flashed.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Urawa-kun," Galaxia said in her most honeyed voice. She brushed his hand when he handed her her briefcase.

Pink patches stained Urawa's cheeks when he wished her good night before Galaxia shut the door.

She leaned against the apartment door, holding the briefcase. Her fake jet black eyes gazed at the door that led to the Memory Room. Urawa... he mentioned Ami Mizuno, also known as Sailor Mercury. It was _so _nice knowing the true identities of the Senshi, having controlled them at the Galaxy Cauldron.

_Let's see how she feels when I take memories from Urawa_, Galaxia thought joyously._ Let's see..._

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ami awoke three days later to the birds chirping outside her window. She wished she was as carefree as they were. The last two days were very bleak in the police station. More and more reports had come in about the strange occurrences.

She yawned and blearily turned on her small tv in her bedroom. No good news regarding the case, as usual. The alarmingly large number of citizens were being attacked by people who thought the victim made him or her "forget" something was growing. Ami sighed.

She headed off to work and made it there safely- police were stationed in more parts of Tokyo due to the attacks.

When she entered, immediately Chief Kana went up to her and said, "Mizuno, there you are. I need you to go to a crime scene, where you'll meet with detectives who are already there."

"I'm on it, Chief-san." Ami turned, exited the station, and climbed into a police cruiser. The siren blared as she raced to the scene. She _finally _had a chance to check out a scene herself.

The chief had told her that the attack came from the Juban area. Immediately, Ami worried about the safety of her friends. The incident had taken place at the very park where Ami and her friends had had their picnic.

Ami turned off her siren and rushed toward the scene. A young girl with pale blue hair lay on the ground in the middle of a crowd, covered with bruises. She barely moved.

"Someone call an ambulance!" Ami commanded, taking charge. A man nodded and dialed quickly with his cell phone.

"Thank God you're here," said a male voice behind her. "We need all the help we can g-"

He cut his sentence short when Ami turned. Their eves widened.

Ami Mizuno was face to face with Ryo Urawa.

"U-Urawa-kun!"

"M-Mizuno-san!"

"...W-What're you doing here?"

Urawa-kun adjusted his tie nervously and said, "I'm a detective now."

"I know."

"Eh?"

Ami blushed. _Now he'll surely think I'm weird_, she thought.

"Uhm...," Urawa-kun stuttered, "I-I saw your picture in the paper."

"Huh? When?"

This time Urawa-kun blushed. "N-nothing." He suddenly turned businesslike. "So... what do you think, Mizuno-san and Leiko-san?"

Ami noticed another young woman behind Urawa-kun, with wavy deep violet hair.

"Oh! Hello, Leiko-san," Ami said politely, bowing. Leiko-san bowed slightly, and then turned her attention to Urawa-kun.

"I think we should let the girl speak before she's taken away by the paramedics," Leiko-san said.

"Right," Urawa-kun replied.

The police officer and the two detectives moved closer to the teen, after asking the crowd to step aside. They tried to wake her, and thankfully she did.

"Are you all right?" Ami asked, concerned, as she held the girl.

The young girl nodded slightly, then winced from her wounds. "It was... terrible," she whispered. Ami, Urawa-kun, and Leiko-san listened to her story. Apparently, she had been walking alone in

the park and was suddenly stuck hard on all parts of her body by a young man. The girl couldn't identify him.

The ambulance arrived and the paramedics quickly took control.

Before the girl was swept away, Ami asked, "Why do you think he attacked you?"

The victim responded by saying that there was something the man said about "forgetting."

Ami grew discouraged, as well as Urawa-kun and Leiko-san. She turned to face Urawa-kun and was going to say something, but immediately Leiko-san started to talk with him, discussing the case. Ami's heart thudded, and she turned away.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As Leiko-san droned on about the case, Ryo found himself staring at Mizuno-san. She looked very good in her police uniform. Her pants followed the curves of her legs...

"Are you paying attention?" Leiko-san asked irritably.

Ryo blushed. "Sorry."

After several hours talking to the witnesses, examining the crime scene, and searching for the attacker Ryo, Mizuno-san, and Leiko-san ceased for the day and agreed to meet again soon.

Mizuno-san was about to enter her police cruiser, but Ryo stopped her by tapping her on the shoulder.

She jumped and turned, her face red.

"Y-yes?"

"Uhm..." His heart pounded. "I-I was wondering if you... if you'd like to go have lunch sometime?"

Mizuno-san was startled, but then she smiled her warm smile.

"Sure!"

"Great! So... how about this Saturday?"

Mizuno-san smiled again. "I'll see you then! Oh! Here's my cell number." She scribbled on a scrap piece of paper in the cruiser and handed it to him.

"Thanks," Ryo replied nervously, his cheeks slightly pink"Here's my cell number too." He pulled out his decorative pen from his breast pocket to retrieve a scrap of paper. When he did, another scrap of paper fluttered from his pocket and landed in front of Mizuno-san.

"A-Ah!" Ryo stammered. He forgot- he hadn't taken this shirt to the cleaners yet, so Mizuno-san's number was still in his pocket. He stooped quickly, fumbled with the paper so Mizuno-san couldn't see it, and found a fresh piece in his pocket. He scribbled his own number and gave it to Mizuno-san.

"Thank you! Bye!" Mizuno-san waved cheerfully before she drove away, and her face was still a little red...

Ryo waved briefly and looked down at her number. "Mizuno-san..." he whispered.

The whole time Leiko-san was watching him, though Ryo didn't realize it.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Galaxia carefully studied Urawa's relationship with Sailor Mercury. _Interesting..._, she thought. _This will be valuable._

"Urawa-kun," she said in her sweetest voice, "we'd better go back to the office."

Urawa snapped to attention. "Ah! Y-Yeah."

When they got back, Urawa and Galaxia headed to Urawa's office to gather their things to leave, for it was past eight o'clock.

Urawa sat at his desk to put away his laptop. Then his head crashed onto the desk.

"What a day... I'm so tired..."

Galaxia walked behind him and slipped her hands onto his shoulders. "You just need rest," she whispered.

Urawa sat up quickly. "Uh, Leiko-san...?"

"Shhh..." Galaxia started to run her hands slowly against his shoulders and back. Then she leaned close to his ear and whispered huskily, "I used to be a massage therapist... I'm good at comforting people. Especially men."

Urawa didn't turn around, but Galaxia could see his ears redden.

"Ryo... I can show you wonderful things. If you'll let me." Galaxia snaked her arms in front of Urawa and loosened his tie.

Urawa finally turned, stiffly. "Uhm... I-I gotta go. Er, I'll s-see you tomorrow, Leiko-san."

Urawa gathered his things quickly, scrambled toward the office door, and exited just as quickly, accidently stumbling into his coworkers.

Galaxia licked her lips.

"Heh."


	6. Seduction

_Chapter 5- Seduction_

On Saturday, Ami's alarm clock rang shrilly at seven a.m. Half asleep and sluggish, she was about to hit the snooze button when she remembered, she was going to meet with Urawa-kun today!

Ami quickly changed into something reasonable and headed to Usagi-chan's house. Usagi and Minako were going to help her get ready.

As she drove, she remembered Urawa-kun's and her conversation the previous day...

--x--

"_Just do it, Ami!" Ami said to herself. Her hands shook as she picked up her slim silver cell phone and flipped it open._

_Suddenly, her cell phone chimed. She jumped and looked at the screen._

"_Eep! Urawa-kun!" Ami nervously raised her phone up to her ear._

"_H-Hello?"_

"_Mizuno-san?"_

_Ami gulped. "Uhm, hi, Urawa-kun. So... So we're getting together tomorrow, right?"_

_Ami could hear Urawa-kun clear his troat. "Y-Yeah. So, d'you want to get lunch, or go to a coffee shop or something?"_

"_S-Sure. A coffee shop sounds fine."_

"_Great! ...Well, I'll see you at say... one thirty at a Dunkin Donuts in the Juban area? Is that okay?"_

"_Sounds good to me!"_

_Ami heard Urawa-kun exhale, as if he had been holding his breath._

"_Okay. See you!" Click._

_Ami exhaled as well. She was really going to see him..._

_She put her phone down calmly and then... started to dance around excitedly._

--x--

Ami smiled at the memory as she pulled into the Chiba household. The large, two-floor house was a pretty shade of ivory with red shutters and brick sides. Lilies surrounded the front and trees decorated the quaint yard. Someone was watering the bright yellow lilies.

"Hey, Ami-chan!" Chibi Usa called.

"Hello, Chibi Usa-chan," Ami replied, smiling. "See you later!"

Ami rang the doorbell, and Mamoru-san answered.

"Hi Ami! Usako and Minako are in the baby's room."

Ami thanked him and stepped inside.

"Ami-chan!" Usagi called when Ami arrived. "Oops. Shhh, Chibi Usa's sleeping."

Minako-chan greeted Ami as well, and then all three girls went to Mamoru and Usagi's bedroom, where her white vanity resided. The vanity had been a gift Chibi Usa brought from the Thirtieth Century from Neo Queen Serenity.

Usagi and Minako brushed and combed Ami's long hair into a cute braided hairstyle which required a barrage of pins. Then they did her make-up and helped her pick out an old outfit of Minako's: a fitting pair of black jeans, with a powder-blue tank top and short black jean jacket. The jewelry included large silver hoops and a teardrop silver choker.

Minako grinned, satisfied with her handiwork. "Perfect! Well, I _am _the Senshi of Love after all."

Ami blushed. "Do you think this is too..."

"Hot?" Minako raised an eyebrow. "I think not!"

Usagi nodded emphatically and giggled.

Ami stopped glowing and then smiled gratefully. "Thanks, guys."

"No biggie!" her two friends said in unison, smiling.

Ami, Usagi, and Minako stepped to the front door and opened it.

Rei-chan and Mako-chan were at the door.

"Huh? What're you two doing here?" Ami inquired.

"Moral support," Rei quipped. She was still in her shrine garb, and Mako wore her apron over her casual outfit.

Usagi linked arms with Ami. "Let's go!"

Ami and her friends set off, walking from Usagi's home to Dunkin Donuts, which wasn't too far away.

They suddenly stopped when they heard a shrill scream. Turning, Ami recoiled in horror.

A young boy raced down the street, closely chased by an ebony-haired middle-aged woman. The woman grabbed the boy and they crashed onto the empty street.

"You took it!" the woman shrieked. "Give it to me _now!_"

The boy wailed as she shook him violently.

"Oh my God!" Ami whipped around to face her friends. "You guys! We have to transform!"

Her friends nodded quickly. "Right!"

"I'll keep watch, and call me on the wrist communicator if you need me," Minako said, determined. "I wish I could fight with you, but..." She rubbed her belly.

Everyone nodded again, and raised their hands.

"_Silver Moon Crystal Power!_" Usagi shouted.

"_Mars Crystal Power!_"

"_Jupiter Crystal Power!_"

Ami finished up when she shouted, "_Mercury Crystal Power!_"

All four girls called in unison, "MAKE UP!"

A blast of silver, red, green, and blue lights erupted from their hands. The lights spiraled upwards forming into ribbons, which delicately floated down and drifted around the four girls' bodies, their street clothes fading away.

Fitting white leotards with orbs at the shoulders, gloves, and knee-high boots formed on Ami's, Rei's, and Mako's bodies. Flowing, two-tiered short skirts relating to their colors swished around their leotards, with bright bows in the back. Sailor collars slid onto their shoulders, with star-shaped broaches in each girl's color at the bows. Their jewelry, star-shaped earrings, golden star tiaras, and chokers adorned with stars glittered into place.

Usagi's sailor adornment resembled her friends' but the most important exception was her heart and moon-shaped broach, which housed the Silver Moon Crystal. Her other exceptions included a three-tiered skirt in yellow, pink, and blue. In addition, the pink orbs at her shoulders were decorated with white, wing-like barrettes - similar barrettes adorned her hair. Red covers glittered onto her odango. Wonderfully beautiful, fluffy, white angel wings spouted onto her back, and the mark of her position as the Moon Princess and Neo Queen Serenity, a golden crescent moon, materialized onto her forehead.

Ami felt water splash toward her as she transformed, swirling around her. It felt absolutely wonderful. Her hair and skirts fluttered as she twirled gracefully, and then she gradually stopped when her power subsided.

Their transformations complete, the girls dashed in front of the boy to protect him.

"In the name of the Moon, we will punish you!" the four Senshi declared.

The woman looked up sharply. "It was _you_,wasn't it!" She dropped the boy and charged.

Ami quickly stepped forward and raised her arms, while Mars ran to the boy to comfort him. An orb of blue light materialized in Ami's hands.

Ami raised the orb above her head and released it, shouting, "_Shabon Spray!_"

A dense fog appeared, obliterating the Senshi from the woman's view. She glared and whirled around, trying to spot them.

Sailor Jupiter faded in from behind and grabbed the woman, pinning the woman's arms behind her back. She struggled, but Jupiter had her in a firm hold.

"Sailor Moon, help her!"

"Got it!" Eternal Sailor Moon closed her eyes and held out her gloved left hand. Power flowed from her broach to it, and a beautiful flower-shaped crystal, the Silver Moon Crystal, floated slightly above her hand.

Sailor Moon held up her holy crystal and let its power take over. Silver light beamed into the woman's heart.

"Please, stop," the Moon Princess whispered softly.

The woman slowly ceased struggling and fell limp in Jupiter's arms.

Ami and Mars ran over to the other two Senshi and tried to rouse the black-haired woman.

Finally, she opened her gray eyes.

"What... am I doing here?"

Mars stepped forward, holding the little boy's hand.

"Mama!" He rushed forward to hold her.

"Mama...? Who are you?"

"Mama?"

The four Senshi's eyes widened.

"So that's it...," Ami whispered. "Memory..."

Her friends gasped.

"...Then how did she lose it?" Jupiter inquired, concerned.

Ami sighed and looked up at the clear blue sky. "I wish I knew..."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ryo checked his watch, while sitting in a maroon booth.

"Two o'clock. I wonder where Mizuno-san is?" He stirred his coffee. He didn't order any pastries yet - Mizuno-san should be arriving any minute.

A busboy came over to wipe a few tables in Ryo's area. "Hey dude, why're ya all by yourself?"

Ryo sighed. "I'm waiting for someone."

The Dunkin Donuts employee grinned. "Ah. Girl trouble."

"Eh? Ah... I... err..."

The table washer laughed. "Don't worry- if a hot girl comes in here, I'll be sure to direct her to you." He winked and continued with his job.

Ryo chuckled- the busboy was most likely younger than him. Then he glanced at his watch again. Ten more minutes had passed. _I wonder if something's wrong_, he thought, a little worried. He tried calling her cell several times, but her voicemail kicked in.

Another half hour ticked by. Ryo sighed again and decided to leave, so he stood.

The door of Dunkin Donuts opened.

"Ah! You're finally he-" Ryo began.

Leiko-san blinked. Ryo flushed.

"Oh, hi, Urawa-kun," Leiko-san said, as if nothing out of the ordinary had ever happened between them. Indeed, after the last few days, Ryo had tried avoiding Leiko-san, though he had to continue to work with her at the office. But nothing happened.

Leiko-san smiled. She wore a white eyelet blouse, and a loose, gypsy-like beaded red skirt that reached her ankles. Her sandals matched her skirt. It was a cute outfit...

"So... are you waiting for someone?" Leiko-san asked.

Ryo nodded, still a little flustered. "Y-Yes. Mizuno-san."

"Ah."

Ryo glanced at his watch yet again.

"I take it she's late?" Leiko-san sat at the booth.

"Um, Leiko-san, Mizuno-san's arriving soon and-"

Leiko-san cut him off. She smirked a little. "If she really wanted to see you she wouldn't be this late, right?

Leiko-san had a point. "...I guess you're right."

Leiko-san stood and started to leave the coffee shop. Then, she stopped and turned.

"...Uhm, Urawa-kun, would you like to come over to my place?"

Ryo was stunned for a second. "B-But, Mizuno-san..."

"Please?"

Her jet-black eyes looked into his. Ryo became transfixed.

"Uhm... okay..."

Ryo stood and left the shop with Leiko-san. After a few steps down the street, Ryo turned back a little, but he faced forward when Leiko-san tugged gently on his white t-shirt.

"My home's pretty close to Dunkin Donuts." After she said this, Leiko-san slipped her arm in his.

"L-Leiko-san?"

Leiko-san turned, a smile on her red-painted lips. "C'mon!"

Ryo's eyes widened as she led him away. The way she held him, it was like they were...

"Uhm, Leiko-san? Can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Yes?"

He stopped her, turned to face her, and was about to say something, when a smiling old woman approached them.

"You two make a lovely couple," she said in a quavering voice.

"Err, I-"

"Thank you, ma'am," said Leiko-san, with a charming smile.

"But... uhm-"

"Please, take care of her, sir!" The woman smiled again and hobbled on her way.

Leiko-san turned to Ryo. "What were you going to say, Urawa-kun?"

Ryo's face burned. "T-That woman... S-she got the wrong id-"

Leiko-san's eyes dropped and grew shiny, and she slipped her arm away from his.

"Ah! L-Leiko-san! Uhm... don't, err..."

Leiko-san looked up at him. "Don't worry, Urawa-kun, there's nothing going on."

Ryo was stunned. Leiko-san was sending _really _weird, mixed messages. It made him uneasy. He began to consider going back to Dunkin Donuts.

But, before he knew it, Leiko-san said, "We're here!"

They entered the apartment and rode the elevator to the second floor. It was a nice apartment building, without too many homes. Ryo wondered how Leiko-san got the money for rent.

"This is my apartment." Leiko-san opened the door and led Ryo inside.

Once again, Ryo was impressed with the quaintness of her apartment. "It's very nice," he said, looking around.

Leiko-san gave him a tour, and Ryo noticed a door that he guessed lead to her bedroom.

"Oh, please don't go in; my room's always a mess...," Leiko-san said, embarrassed. Then she flushed a little and placed a hand on her forehead.

Ryo turned to Leiko-san. "Are you hot? Do you have an air conditioner?"

Leiko-san smiled. "Yes, I am a little... hot..."

She slowly began to unbutton her blouse. Ryo's eyes widened.

A few buttons later, Leiko-san removed her blouse, revealing a lacy lavender bra. "What's wrong... Ryo?"

Ryo had backed up against the wall, blushing very very red.

"L-Leiko-san! What're you-"

Leiko-san moved closer to him, her bra straps slipping onto her shoulders. She grabbed Ryo's hand, and placed it on her chest.

"Do you feel my heart beating?"

Ryo could not speak. Leiko-san began to pull him over to her red couch in the living room.

"Ryo..." Ryo landed with a thud as she pushed him onto the couch. She tugged at his t-shirt, quickly sliding it off.

"L-Leiko-san!" Ryo was still in shock.

"Shhh..." She put a finger on his lips as she climbed on top of him, caressing his chest. She traced his lips with her finger, her eyes bright and her face flushed. Her hair fell onto her face as she leaned closer.

"I've wondered what it's like to taste these lips..."

"I s-should go...!"

"Go where?" she whispered seductively. "All you need is right... here..."

"I-"

"Shut up," she breathed huskily.

Her head swooped down and their lips connected.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Perfect_, Galaxia thought smugly, as she pinned down andpassionately kissed Urawa.

Urawa was frozen with his eyes wide open. However... after a few minutes his stiffness eased a little and he weakened. Slowly, ever so slowly, his strong arms wrapped around Galaxia's waist, pulling her closer. His eyes closed, and he let pure lust take over.

"Ryo..." Galaxia whispered, not breaking the kiss. Her arms snaked around his neck, and her hands roamed his hair. Urawa answered by kissing back fiercely. Moaning, he pressed her even tighter against his body. They devoured each other, their tongues clashing and their hands wandering.

Galaxia finally broke the kiss and trailed savory kisses down his neck, leaving tiny lipstick marks. Urawa moaned again, loudly, biting his lip. He glued her body to his, rubbing her hips and exploring her legs. He nibbled and sucked on her ears. Their bodies tangled together like vines on a tree branch.

Galaxia ceased kissing Urawa and looked into his eyes scandalously. Their faces were flushed, Their breath came out in spurts, and their lips were swollen.

"...Ryo?"

"Yes... Yumi?" He leaned up to kiss her sensually once again but Galaxia stopped him.

Galaxia's eyes flashed. "Your memory is mine."

Before Urawa could respond, Galaxia pointed her slim finger at him and a burst of gold light erupted from his body. He fell limp on the couch. A barrage of images that resembled an old-fashioned movie reel spilled out from his forehead, swirling in front of her.

Galaxia removed her Yumi disguise and slid off the couch to look at it, wiping her mouth with disgust. After scanning through it twice, she found what she was looking for.

She snatched something from Urawa's "movie reel" of memory. In her hand appeared a swirling marble-sized orb of light.

She smirked. "Let's see how Sailor Mercury will react." She turned to put the orb in her great stone room.

When she came back, Urawa opened his dark eyes and stared at Galaxia.

"Who are you...?"

Galaxia smiled. "Your girlfriend, Yumi."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Author's Note: Eh, hee... -virtual blush-_


	7. Shock

Happy New Year everyone! I present chappie 6! -Tesh : )

_Chapter 6- Shock_

After the Senshi transformed back to normal, they discussed the attack quickly. When did this happen? Why did the woman attack her own son? So many frustrating, unanswered questions.

As her fellow Senshi continued to converse about sending the boy and his mother to the hospital, Ami checked the time on her cell phone.

"Ah, NO!"

"What's wrong, Ami-chan?" Usagi turned.

"I'M _LATE!_"

Her friends gasped as they watched Ami lose it, which wasn't in her nature at all.

"No! No, no, no, no! We... We have to get to the coffee shop!" She paced from side to side, thinking and biting her lip.

"Hey, calm down, Ami-chan," Mako said soothingly. "I'm sure Urawa-kun will understand. Maybe he's still there."

Ami turned to her friend. "Yes... you're right. But, I still have to get down there!"

With that, Ami took off after saying goodbye to her friends.

When she got there, Ami scanned the shop. Urawa-kun was nowhere to be found. She sighed.

Ami flipped open her cell and peered at the screen. "No! He tried to call me!" She quickly dialed his phone number.

_Hello, Ryo Urawa here. Sorry I missed your call. Please leave a message! Chime._

Ami left a message, apologizing over and over for being late. She said that she'll explain why, if they met again. She sincerely hoped that they would.

Discouraged, Ami walked back to Usagi's, and gave Minako her outfit back. Her friends hugged her before she drove home.

Ami entered her apartment and collapsed onto her bed. Tears slid down her face onto her pillow.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yumi let Ryo go home after devouring his lips once more.

"Bye, Ryo-chan," she whispered.

Ryo grinned and turned for the door, but then grabbed her wrist and pulled her into a tight embrace, kissing her nose over and over.

Yumi giggled and tried to get him to leave again. She teasingly punched him, which was an excuse for Ryo to grab her hand and kiss her palm.

"Really, bye!" His girlfriend rubbed his back and playfully pushed him out.

Ryo stared at the door when it closed. He was so... infatuated with his girlfriend. Then... he wondered how long they had been going out...

"Ah well. She's mine and all mine." Ryo walked down the street with a new spring in his step.

His cell phone chimed, and he checked his voicemail. Someone's phone number that he didn't recognize appeared on the small screen.

"Who's Mizuno?" he wondered. Then he put a hand on his forehead.

"Uhnn... Well, whoever it is, they better not call again or I'll... hurt them."

He wondered where his car was. He searched and found it in the parking lot of a Dunkin Donuts.

"What's it doing here? Ah well." He climbed in and drove to his apartment.

When he got home, he called his mother and had a great conversation with her about how he was doing much better.

"I have a girlfriend!"

"Really?" Erika replied, ecstatic. "So, how's Mizuno-san?"

"...Mizuno-san?"

Ryo's mother's voice sounded concerned. "Sunshine, it's not Mizuno-san?"

"...No, I've never heard of her..."

Erika gasped. "Is something wrong?"

"Everything's fine! Don't worry. I'll talk to you soon, Mother."

"O-Okay..."

Ryo hung up. He stepped over to the bathroom, which was through the kitchen. He walked by the refrigerator and noticed something. A newspaper clipping was attached to the fridge by an "R"-shaped magnet.

"The Tokyo Police Department? Why do I have that?" He took the clipping down and threw it away.

When he got to the bathroom, he looked into the mirror. His t-shirt was terribly wrinkled, his hair looked like a lawnmower attacked it, and his lips were a blotchy red due to Yumi's lipstick. It was cherry... He licked his lips.

He freshened up and changed into fresh clothes to sleep in. He flicked on the television to play his GameCube, but something caught his attention. News of a mysterious phenomenon.

_That's right! _Ryo thought, determined. _We've still got work to do!_

Then he realized- he worked with Yumi! He smiled. Another excuse to be together with her. But, he did have to be serious. But still. He blushed when he thought of Yumi and himself alone together in his office. He shook himself.

Ryo's cell phone rang, and he picked it up.

"Who _is _this Mizuno person?" he said irritably. He felt anger bubble up inside him...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Galaxia walked to the bathroom in her apartment and peered into her mirror. Her violet hair was a mess, her makeup was smeared, her lips were still swollen, and her ears had marks on them due to Urawa's sucking. He had kissed her neck as well- red marks adorned her neck.

Galaxia wiped her mouth. "Disgusting."

She had planned to weaken Urawa by kissing him, but... that was pretty intense kissing. She had never kissed anyone, having been alone all her life. It was... kinda...

"Hmph," she said scornfully. She left the bathroom and entered the Memory Room, her disguise dissolving.

By now, it was a beautiful collection. The room glowed with a pristine rainbow of colors.

She walked to Urawa's pillar and tapped the orb. At once a "movie reel" streamed out and she watched it. She had been successful- she had taken Urawa's first memory of Sailor Mercury- when he had admired the 'Girl Genius.' Next was to be his first encounter with her.

"Heh, now to attack her, and when Urawa does, that Senshi's memories are mine."

She felt her mouth- still swollen. She sniffed her transparent hands. They smelled like... man. Parts of her body still had sweat where she had been glued to his body.

She was disgusted, but...

"Hmph."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

On Monday, Ami woke up with a sigh. Work today. And she was pretty sure she was going to work with Urawa-kun and Leiko-san. She didn't know if she could face him.

At least she and the Senshi knew what the crisis was. She told the Outer Senshi, Chibi Usa, Luna, Artemis, and Diana...

--x--

_"_What?_"_ _Haruka cried, jumping up from her chair at the Control Room in the Crown Arcade._

_Ami nodded grimly._

"_...Memory?" Setsuna said, but more calmly._

_Hotaru gasped, as did Chibi Usa._

_Michiru shook her aquamarine head. "That's terrible."_

_Diana, in her human form, like her parents, cocked her head. "Do you have any clue as to who's doing this?"_

"_Unfortunately, no," Rei said bitterly._

_Usagi's eyes grew bright. "That poor boy... His mother doesn't even recognize him..."_

_Luna placed a slender hand on Usagi's shoulder and let the Princess lean against her. "It'll be okay, Usagi-chan."_

_Usagi sniffed, but told her friends that she'd be all right. "I'll let Mamo-chan know about what we found out as well," she said._

"_They won't get away with this," Haruka growled. "Michiru, Hotaru, Setsuna, and I will stay in the Control Room and investigate further with our Guardian Senshi."_

_Michiru, Hotaru, and Setsuna nodded._

_Ami watched her friends. They looked so somber. They were getting nowhere._

--x--

Ami got to work and Chief Kana gave her the task of working with detectives again. She sighed, and climbed into her cruiser.

She arrived at the crime scene she had investigated earlier with Urawa-kun and Leiko-san. They were already there withtheir backs turned. Ami gulped and stepped over to them.

"Uhm, hi, you guys. So, what should we do fir-"

Urawa-kun and Leiko-san were kissing desperately, oblivious to the world. Urawa-kun had his hands on Leiko-san's hips, and Leiko-san's arms were wrapped around Urawa-kun's neck. Their bodies were glued together; it looked like they were going to topple onto the grass to kiss even more deeply. Urawa-kun moaned as he kissed her passionately. Leiko-san had her eyes closed, and her leg lifted.

Leiko-san stopped kissing Urawa-kun and turned. "Why, hello, Mizuno-san. Is something wrong?" She smiled sweetly.

Ami's eyes had widened and she blushed spectacularly. She could not move. She could not breathe. She thought her blue-black eyes deceived her.

Urawa-kun looked up. "So, _you're _Mizuno," he said. "Nice to meet you, I guess... Or have I met you before?"

Ami clutched her police uniform's shirt and started to tremble. She felt sick.

Leiko-san turned and kissed Urawa-kun briefly on the ear. Urawa-kun chuckled and cupped her chin, about to kiss her again, but she stopped him.

"Oh, Ryo-chan, stop it! We're working!" she giggled.

_Ryo-chan? _Ami blanched. Her hands shaking, she pulled out her notes on the case, and tried to speak. No sound came out. Her throat had tightened.

Leiko-san raised an eyebrow when Ami let out a dry sob. She smirked.

"You can tell us what's wrong, Mizuno-san." Urawa-kun now had his arms wrapped around Leiko-san's waist behind her, nuzzling her neck. She ran her hands on his arms, blushing.

Ami backed up against her cruiser, now shaking uncontrollably.

Urawa-kun looked up. "What? Are you sick or something?"

Ami wrenched open the door to the cruiser and rushed inside.

"Where're you going?" Leiko-san called, though she did not try to stop Ami. The smirk was still on her face.

The siren wailed as Ami backed up quickly and sped away. She still shook, but her voice came back. Loud sobs issued from her throat and hot tears fell in torrents onto her lap. She had no idea why she had put her siren on, but she wanted to get as far away from that park as possible.

Ami pulled to the side of the road and parked, finally turning the siren off. She cried harder.

_When did this happen? _she screamed in her head. _When!_

What happened to the sweet, slightly shy Urawa-kun?

She spent a long time alone in the cruiser, crying, trembling, and her heart pounding at what she saw. Then, she finally started the cruiser and drove back to the TPD, to most likely be very sternly spoken to by Chief Kana.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Eh? Why did Mizuno leave?" Ryo asked his girlfriend, puzzled.

"Beats me," Yumi replied with a shrug. "We'd better get to work."

"Nah, forget work for a bit- we've been working too hard lately."

"Ryo-chan..."

Ryo grinned and pushed her on the grass gently, loosening his tie. She unbuttoned her lavender blouse a bit, and...

"Ewww, Mama, look!" a little girl squealed, pointing. "They're kissing!"

The girl's mother shook her head at Ryo and Yumi. "No decency, this younger generation..."

Ryo and Yumi didn't hear them. They were too busy going for each other.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After Sailor Mercury left, Galaxia felt a surge of triumph. The next item on her agenda was to erase Urawa's memory of Sailor Mercury completely, make him attack her, and then, systematically take away all of this solar system's Senshi's memories of being Senshi.

_I always get what I want_, Galaxia thought. _Star Seeds, planets... I will take away their names, lives, everything. Everything._

She snapped out of her thoughts when Urawa whispered in her ear, "God, I want you so badly..."

Galaxia blushed, the first time she ever genuinely blushed in a long time. _He wants... _me? she thought. She had never heard that before from any living creature, especially humans.

Then she thought, _Cheh. He's just saying that because he doesn't remember Sailor Mercury. He doesn't have any interest in "Yumi" at all._

That thought stung a bit. _Wait, what? What am I doing? Urawa is just a pawn, a worthless portion in my plan._

But still...

Galaxia's heart beat fast, and she said, "You. Me. Your bed. I told you that I can show you wonderful things. Just one condition."

"Yes?"

Galaxia smiled, a true smile. "Never let me go."

With that, they forgot all about work. Urawa and she ran off, hand in hand.

For some reason, Galaxia felt light and airy as she ran. She glanced at Urawa. The wind teased his brown hair, and his shining eyes... They were as dark as Galaxia's fake jet-black eyes.

Galaxia shook herself. What was wrong with her?

Urawa's apartment was a ways away, but to them is seemed like two steps away. They rushed through the main door and into the elevator. Kissing, they rode it to the tenth floor. Still kissing, Urawa scooped her up under her legs, clumsily pulled out his keys, and opened his apartment door.

Before the door even closed, they hurriedly began to strip. Urawa slammed Galaxia against the wall and kissed her ferociously, his hands sliding off her blouse. Galaxia gasped with pleasure when he ran his finger down her spine.

...With pleasure? Galaxia frowned, though Urawa didn't see due to his kissing her shoulder.

They reached Urawa's bedroom door, still kissing. They clumsily entered.

Galaxia's back rammed onto the cloud-like mattress and arched. Urawa pounced on top of her like an animal. They tangled together on the bed, the sheets curling around them. Galaxia was in her undergarments- she had chosen to wear very revealing lingerie to make Urawa blind with lust.

Urawa gently eased open her lips with his tongue and tasted her, rolling his tongue in her mouth in a steady rhythm. This was an odd sensation to Galaxia. However, she grew used to it, and slid her tongue to meet his. Their tongues danced together, and their owners enjoyed it. The kiss tasted sweet, like sugar.

...Enjoyed it? Sweet?

Once again, Urawa said, "I need you. I _want _you, Yumi."

Galaxia felt airy again. It clouded her judgment, but she didn't care anymore. For the first time in her life, she wanted something other than power.

His hands swiftly found her white-lace thong, and her hands grabbed the elastic of his boxers. It was time to make love.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Uhm... -virtual blushes again- Eh, hee...


	8. Lost

Author's Note 1: In case you were wondering, Chapter 6 is most likely the last "risque" chapter in the whole fic. I apologize if anyone was shocked or offended- I didn't mean to, but it is part of the story. - Tesh : )

_Chapter 7- Lost_

She was right- she got a stern talking-to by Chief Kana. But he gave her another chance; she'd never done anything like this before.

Ami entered her car after work. She peered into her overhead mirror above the steering wheel.

Her eyes were red and puffy. She had a headache. Her heart still hurt.

She drove home, dazed. When she got home, she called each of her friends and asked them to come over. However, Michiru couldn't attend, as did Setsuna.

As soon as her friends arrived, Usagi took one look at Ami and rushed to hug her. Ami smiled slightly- Usagi-chan had such a good heart.

"What happened, Ami-chan?" Hotaru asked, worry in her violet eyes.

Ami explained what had happened, trying not to cry, but she couldn't hide her tears.

Mako's green eyes widened. "Kissing her?"

Ami nodded. Usagi hugged her tightly again.

Haruka pondered, and said slowly, "You mentioned that people's memories had been stolen, right? ...D'you think that... Urawa's memory of you was taken?"

Everyone gasped. "...I think you're right," Rei replied, frowning.

Ami's eyes widened. That explained it! "We've gotta help him!" she cried. Then she buried her face into Usagi's shoulder, weeping.

Ami's friends huddled around her, holding her close, with their eyes full of understanding.

Ami gave them a watery smile. "Thank you, guys."

Ami's friends smiled, and Chibi Usa said, "We'll get his memory back, Ami-chan. I know it."

And the Senshi, including Ami, agreed, their courage growing.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

At daybreak, Ryo's eyes twitched slightly. Then, he smiled when he opened them completely. Yumi's warm body was snuggled next to his. It had been a wonderful night.

Ryo looked closer... Wait, was it Yumi? She looked slightly... faint, and her hair... It was much longer- gold and red.

"...Yumi?"

Yumi blinked and her eyes fluttered open. "Ryo-chan...?" Then she looked down at herself and gasped.

"What's wrong?" Ryo asked, concerned.

"Ah! I... I should go!"

"Eh? But why?"

Yumi hurriedly found her clothes, which were also transparent, and put them on. When she did, she turned to face him.

Yumi pointed at him and said, "I... I have to do this." For some reason, Ryo saw pity in her eyes.

A blast of white light enveloped Ryo. He felt a sensation which felt like something was poring out of his body. He grew numb, and he collapsed.

--x--

_Fourteen-year-old Ryo scrambled to his new cram school on Saturday, extremely stressed. It was his first day, and he wanted to make a good impression on his new professor and classmates._

_The spring rain drenched him; he had forgotten to bring an umbrella. "Never leave home without an umbrella," his mother, Erika, always said. He wished he had listened._

_He splashed through the sidewalks and crossed the busy Juban streets safely. He was almost there._

_He finally made it, and dashed up the steps. However, he collided with a girl holding a lavender umbrella. Textbooks, papers, and their schoolbags flew everywhere._

_"Ah no! I'm _so _sorry!" Ryo exclaimed. He hurried to gather the girl's things and helped her up._

_Her hand felt soft and cool. And her eyes were such a rich shade of jet-black that he found himself getting lost in them- they matched his. The girl's violet hair grew wet in the rain, but it looked nice on her._

_"It's all right," the girl said kindly. "Are you okay?"_

_"I-I'm fine."_

_"Oh! I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Leiko. Yumi Leiko."_

_"Ryo Urawa." He was dying to touch her hand again, and his wish came true when they shook hands._

_Leiko-san pushed a lock of her shoulder-length wet hair behind her ear. "Nice to meet you, Urawa-kun! I hope you like this cram school. Who knows- we may even be in the same class!"_

_Her bright smile warmed him, even in the cold rain._

--x--

Ryo opened his eyes. Yumi was right in front of him, smiling her beautiful smile. So, _that's _how they met...

Ryo felt something stir deep within his heart. He was tired of lusty kissing, he just wanted to hold her close. He did just so. Personally, he became a little embarrassed about what they had done.

However, he was in love.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_That was a close one_, Galaxia thought, relieved. Her disguise was in place, and she completely eradicated Urawa's memory of Sailor Mercury. However, she felt a little sorry for him... But she felt at peace and wanted to hug him back, and she did just so.

Urawa dressed, glanced at his alarm clock, and did a double-take.

"_Oh my God!_" he exclaimed. "_Work!_"

Galaxia gasped.

They scrambled to get to the office, Urawa tying his shoes in the car and Galaxia trying to get her fake violet hair in place.

As Urawa drove, Galaxia looked at him again. His tongue hung out a little from concentration, and his lips... They were soft, like feathers...

Galaxia contemplated as she struggled with her feelings. ...Feelings? Since when has she ever felt anything?

_That's it_, she thought angrily. _Mizuno- Sailor Mercury. I'll take what I want from her._

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next day, Ami took the day off. She needed to clear her head, so she went to a different park which was not near _that _park. She brought her chess set with her. The one her divorced father gave her so long ago.

She played with a kind old man. She won, of course. She smiled. That's what her father did- played chess to keep a level head. She used to have a hard time beating her father, but she had mastered it even at her very young age.

Later that day, Ami went to the Sports Club where her father had taught her how to swim. Swimming- another activity that cleared her thoughts.

She changed into her one-piece bathing suit and slipped into the cool, crystalline water. She was surprised to find that she was alone.

After doing a couple of rounds around the Olympic-sized pool, Ami moved to the middle and played around, twirling, kicking, and splashing for fun. She enjoyed the solitude, and being in her element as the Senshi of Water.

Someone's footsteps reverberated in the swimming pool room. Ami waded over to the edge of the pool to have a look.

"...Urawa-kun?" Ami blushed.

Urawa-kun didn't answer her. He walked over to the edge of the pool to where Ami was, and knelt down to face her.

"Uhm... W-What's wrong?"

Again, Urawa-kun didn't say anything. He just stared at her. His eyes... she knew they were dark, but now... They were pitch-black.

"Urawa-ku- What are you doing!"

Urawa-kun had cupped her chin and raised her face to match his. His face moved closer... Ami stayed stock-still in the pool, paralyzed, her face _very _red.

A loud _crack _reverberated in the room.

Ami shakily looked up. Her right side bled profusely from the hard concrete edge of the pool. She gasped- even though she had wanted to be a doctor, the sight of her own blood mingling with the water chilled her.

"U-Urawa-kun! W-Why...?"

Again, Urawa-kun did not speak. His hands grabbed her slender neck and slowly lifted her out of the pool. Was he always this strong?

Ami struggled and gasped for breath. Water and blood dripped from her body onto the stone floor.

Urawa-kun flung Ami aside when someone else stepped into the room. Ami fell hard, still gasping. She didn't move, frozen with fear.

"Hello, Mizuno-san," said a crisp female voice.

Ami's head turned sharply.

"...L-Leiko-san?"

Leiko-san smiled. "How are you?" she asked politely. An odd question, given that Ami's pale yellow bathing suit was smeared with blood.

Ami froze when Leiko-san walked toward her.

"I-Is something wrong with Urawa-kun?" Ami stuttered, still in shock. She winced from her wound.

Leiko-san smirked. "Oh, Ryo-chan's fine. He just wanted to go for a swim." She turned away from Ami. "Bye, now."

"Wait!"

Leiko-san didn't look back as she exited, and the double doors slammed behind her.

Ami watched Urawa-kun turn toward her with a bizarre expression on his face- like he was hungry, yet not ready for food.

Ami gasped when she recognized his behavior. _I have to help him!_

Shaking, she raised her hand. "_Mercury Cryst-!_"

Urawa-kun's eyes flashed and he charged, ready to strike.

Ami's determination grew. "_Mercury Crystal Power..._"

Urawa-kun was inches from her, his hands ready to grab her.

"...MAKE UP!"

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--x--

"_Fired?" Ryo whispered, in shock._

"_That's right," Ryo and Yumi's boss replied sternly. "Fired. I don't need irresponsible detectives like you two."_

_Yumi's eyes grew glassy. Ryo put his arm around her waist and scowled at Detective Keiji._

"_I don't think you're being fair, Chief-san. Yumi just started here."_

_Detective Keiji waved a hand carelessly. "Yeah? Well she should've been grateful that I hired her. To do her_ job._"_

"_But-"_

"_Leave my office, Urawa. Leave my office, Leiko."_

_Defeated, they did as he said._

_Stepping out into the warm sunlight, Ryo turned to his girlfriend, whose makeup was running._

_Ryo wiped away her tears and said, "Don't worry, Yumi. We'll get through this."_

_Yumi nodded slightly, and then leaned against him._

"_It's because of Mizuno," she whispered angrily. "If she hadn't run away none of this would've happened."_

_Ryo nodded in agreement, frowning. "Yeah... Mizuno."_

--x--

Was it dark? A woman... A woman was in front of him. Someone whom he wanted to hurt very badly.

Ryo acted on impulse and ran at the woman. The woman... She had long blue hair, and wore a bizarre outfit. ...A sailor suit? Why?

The darkness enveloped his eyes momentarily. Ryo fought to see. Why was it so dark?

The woman was screaming. Why? He realized that he had his hands around her neck. He wanted her to stop screaming, so he tightened his grip.

God, why did she keep screaming? Ryo dropped the woman, annoyed.

There was a red splotch on the ground. Then, he wondered where he was. A large room... It had water in it. He bent down to examine the red spot.

A female voice reverberated in his head. Suddenly, everything was unclear, as if there was some kind of fog.

Ryo started when he heard a voice come from behind him- the same voice that had screamed.

_Urawa-kun..._

Ryo blinked. Was that his name?

He turned. The blue-haired woman was behind him. Her face was wet. Was she crying?

Ryo wanted her to stop crying. He stepped closer to her, but suddenly slapped her in the face. She fell in a heap.

The woman shakily stood, and faced him. Water was issuing from her blue-black eyes, and her cheek had a red mark.

_Urawa-kun..._

Ryo struggled to clear his mind. Why was this woman here? Who was she?

A female voice reverberated in his head once again- a different one.

_Good, Urawa. I'll take it from here._

Without realizing it, Ryo struck the blue-haired woman hard, and she collapsed.

Then _he _collapsed, engulfed by the darkness.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The double doors of the pool room creaked open, and footsteps echoed against the tiled walls.

Galaxia bent down to analyze her handiwork. Sailor Mercury and Urawa were clearly unconscious. She smirked.

She pointed at Mercury just as she did to Urawa and extracted a memory. A very important one.

Urawa stirred a bit, and Galaxia looked at him worriedly.

Worriedly? Galaxia frowned, but roused him.

"W-What...? ...Yumi?"

Galaxia smiled to herself. "Yes, it's me. You had a big fall."

"Ehh?"

"Thankfully you're okay, right?" Galaxia bent down and gave him a long, lingering kiss.

Urawa smiled. "Thanks," he said, as she helped him up.

He looked down, and did a double-take. "W-What happened to _her!_"

Galaxia glanced at Mercury, whose sailor-fuku had disappeared. Galaxia had cleared the blood and healed her side. Just in case.

"Nothing, Ryo-chan, she's fine. She's just resting."

Urawa blinked, looked at Mercury again, but finally gazed back at Galaxia.

"Okay. Let's go."

As they left, and Galaxia briefly turned back to Sailor Mercury. She smirked as her fake violet hair whipped around the corner.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Author's Note 2: I'm so sorry for the long wait! I've been busy with school, and my editors have been busy too. Hopefully this chappie will make up for it. Gomen! o.o; - Tesh : )


	9. A Senshi?

4/25/07 Once again, 's been a while since I last updated, I'm sorry. My spring sem is almost over. I've also been very uninspired to write… but hopefully I'll get over it. 9 is on it's way- I already typed it up, and my editors will get back to me when they can. Thanks for baring with me! – Tesh : )

_Chapter 8- "A… Senshi?"_

When Ami awoke the next day, she found herself in her warm bed. In a daze, she sat up. Her bedroom was tidy as usual, everything in place. Her pale yellow swimsuit was slung over a chair at her desk to dry.

"…Bathing suit? When did I go swimming?"

Trying to shake off the haziness, Ami dressed for work and drove to the police station.

As usual, her coworkers called, "Hey, Mizuno!"

Ami waved, but didn't smile. She still felt hazy, and now a little dizzy. She stumbled into Chief Kana.

"I-I'm sorry, Chief-san," she mumbled.

He looked at her, concerned. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine…"

Ami's boss looked her over, and said, "I'll have you take it easy today by filing reports."

"Okay."

Ami went to her little cubicle. A stack of paperwork awaited her.

"Uhn...," she groaned, putting a hand on her forehead. What was wrong with her?

Her thoughts drifted…

--x--

_Fourteen-year-old Ami sat in her cram school, trying to use the new Crystal Disk. She still didn't feel comfortable with it. _

_Her professor, who was standing next to Ami's desk, told Ami that the other students were trying to catch up with her. Her professor's words pushed Ami to work harder. She did not want anything to hinder the way to her dream._

_Before Ami could comprehend, the professor changed into a grotesque form- she was no longer human._

_Ami screamed and her chair crashed onto the ground as she stood quickly to try to get away. The hideous demon began attacking Ami's classmates, who seemed to be unfazed. Why weren't they scared?_

_Suddenly the beast whipped around to face her and she lunged forward. She grabbed Ami by the neck, lifting her up._

"_Why didn't you use the disk! _Why!_"_

_Ami struggled and choked out, "I-I don't need… a disk!"_

_Someone crashed into the classroom. The demon turned. Ami stared- a nurse with blonde hair had entered._

"_Let go of Ami!"_

What?_ Ami thought, fear and curiosity mingling together._ How does she know my name?

_The monster dropped Ami and charged at the nurse. _

_The blonde didn't seem phased. She quickly raised her hand._

"Moon Prism Power…_"_

_Ami's blue-black eyes widened. The nurse looked like her new friend Usagi Tsukino…_

"…MAKE UP!_"_

_Sailor Moon appeared right before her eyes and fought the demon and the hypnotized students._

_When Sailor Moon started to lose the fight, a black cat with a golden crescent moon on its forehead appeared right in front of Ami. "Ami-chan, use this!" A blue pen sparkled in Ami's hand. _

_Before Ami could question how Luna could talk, the monster lunged at her again._

"Mer-!_"_

--x--

Ami blinked. What a strange daydream… Why was Sailor Moon in it?

She stretched and finished filing. Then, she went to the chief for further instructions.

"Good work, Mizuno," he said. Suddenly, the chief's phone rang, bringing more bad news. He sighed. "An attack. Again. What the hell's going on?"

Ami gasped a little. Chief Kana had never cursed in front of her. It was a sign of how frustrated he was.

Her new assignment was to try to bring order to the scene, though not with detectives, to her relief. She strode out to of the office to do her duty.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He woke with Yumi in his arms once again. This time, however, they were in Ryo's apartment. She opened her eyes as well and looked up at him, smiling her beautiful smile. She snuggled closer to him. Ryo kissed her forehead and then sat up from his couch. At once, he collapsed back onto one of the pillows.

"Ugh… I don't feel very good…"

Yumi looked at him, concerned. She stood and said, "I'll make you some soup. Where do you keep your groceries?"

Ryo told her where. "Thanks a lot."

But, before Yumi could return with the soup, Ryo was fast asleep.

--x--

"…Power! MAKE UP!_"_

_Ryo stared as someone called out something that made a blast of blue light fill the room. He couldn't tell who had called out through the bright flash._

_He still couldn't see when the person- a woman- stepped behind him and said his name._

_He turned and saw a woman with blue hair, shining in white light. He squinted. No, she had wavy violet hair._

_Many times the image of the woman shifted back and fourth. Ryo was very perplexed at what he saw._

_Finally the image stopped on the blue-haired woman. Ryo walked closer. She was crying…._

--x--

Ryo blinked and sat up. Nausea set in, and he blanched.

When he came back from the bathroom, shaking and wiping his mouth, he found Yumi standing near the bathroom door with a worried look on her face. She was holding the soup, and a little was splashed down her front from hurrying to the bathroom door.

Ryo reassured her that he was all right. He went to lie back down on the couch. She kissed him on the ear, and he laughed and tickled her. After about two minutes of playful wrestling, the pair sprawled onto his couch.

"…What will we do about work?" Yumi asked in a tiny voice.

"…I don't know. But I'll do anything to help you."

Tears sprang into Yumi's eyes. "Thank you," she whispered.

Ryo ate his soup, and later they both gathered their coats, prepared to live through the awful reality of searching for employment.

"Wait a minute, Ryo-chan," said Yumi. "You go ahead to the newspaper stand. I'll catch up with you, okay?"

Ryo nodded. "All right. See you later."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Galaxia watched Urawa as he left. She did not follow him. She had something else to do.

Moving quickly, she searched for a victim. _Those Senshi shouldn't be anywhere near here_, she thought, as she rounded the corner and saw a dark alleyway.

_Ah_, she thought, when she saw a little girl, possibly seven or eight years old. She seemed to have run a little ways ahead of her mother.

Galaxia smiled down at the girl "Hello there, little one."

The girl's baby blue eyes twinkled when she said, "Hi, Lady!"

Galaxia glanced around and said, "Where is your mother?"

The innocent child beamed up at her. "Oh, Mama's not here. I'm doin' an errand all by myself!" she said proudly.

"Well, aren't you a big girl?"

"Yup!"

Galaxia glanced around again. "Why don't I come with you?"

The girl looked a little skeptical. "Mama says don't go with strangers…"

"Oh, don't worry about it. Actually, I'll tell you a secret!" Galaxia bent down to the child's level and whispered in her ear, "I'm Sailor Moon!"

Clear blue eyes widened. "Really! Moon-chan?"

Galaxia nodded, smiling.

"Wow! Can… Can you transform for me?"

"Sure!" Galaxia took the foolish Earthling's small hand and lead her down the alley.

"Do it!" the child cried excitedly.

"With pleasure." Galaxia closed her eyes. When she opened them, Galaxia's Yumi disguise faded away and was replaced with her own glorious gold sailor-fuku.

"M-Moon-chan? Where are your wi-?"

Galaxia pointed at the Earthling, just as she did to Urawa and Sailor Mercury. The girl screamed, and, just like Galaxia did to Urawa and countless others, she extracted her memory. The child's eyes grew blank, and she took on a pale skin tone.

"Go," Galaxia commanded to the girl. Another impending attack was in order. Then, Galaxia snapped her fingers and her disguise formed back onto her body. She snapped her fingers again to make the ball of light materialize onto her hand.

"Hey!"

Galaxia turned, and…

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ami continued to feel hazy as she drove to the crime scene. She remembered a strange phone call she received before she set off.

--x--

Okay, Ami, you can do this_, Ami thought, fighting the vagueness seeping through her. There was work to be done._

_At first she didn't hear it, but then Ami realized that her cell phone was emitting its soothing ringtone. She didn't recognize the phone number._

"_Hello?"_

"_Ami-chan? How are you feeling now?" said a cheerful female voice._

"…_Who are you?"_

"…_Ami-chan? Is something wrong? It's me, Usagi."_

"_Usagi…?"_

_Now, the voice sounded concerned. "Did something happen?"_

_Ami started to get angry. Her blue-black eyes flashed as she answered this Usagi person._

"_Listen, I don't know who you are, but don't call again!"_

"_A-Ami-chan…?"_

_Ami scowled and did not let Usagi respond completely. She jabbed the "end call" button._

--x--

For some reason, the phone call made Ami shake with frustration. Usagi… whoever she was, Ami would report the call to the authorities- her coworkers.

She drove down a heavily congested street in Juban. Why it was congested, she didn't know… Maybe there was an accident? Ami pulled to the side of the road to take charge. She adjusted her badge and exited the vehicle.

"This is Ami Mizuno, a Tokyo police officer! What is the commotion!"

Ami saw three young women and two teens that she didn't recognize facing… Yumi Leiko.

…Leiko-san?

Leiko-san appeared to be arguing with them. Ami moved closer.

"How _dare_ you hurt an innocent girl!" a teen with pink hair shouted.

Ami then noticed something- there were civilians stuck in traffic and walking by, but they seemed oblivious to the conflict.

Leiko-san had something bright in her fist, but it quickly faded away.

"I have no idea what you want with me."

"Liar!" a tall woman with boyish hair retorted. "Give that to us!"

Ami blinked. Were they referring to the bright object?

Another petite teenager with short black hair glared at Leiko-san. "Are you behind this?" she demanded, her violet eyes filled with fury.

Leiko-san smirked. "You tell me… Sailor Senshi."

Ami blinked again, and watched the women's looks of shock.

"That's it! We don't have to deal with this!" The pink-haired girl jabbed her hand in the air.

"_Pink Moon Crystal Power…_"

"_Saturn Crystal Power…_"

"_Uranus Crystal Power…_"

"_Neptune Crystal Power…_"

"_Pluto Crystal Power…_"

Together, they cried, "MAKE UP!"

Ami's eyes widened as she watched the women transform into the Sailor Senshi. Leiko-san didn't seem fazed at all. It was like she was expecting the women to transform.

Sailor Uranus pulled out a sparkling sword and charged at Leiko-san. Leiko-san dodged, her eyes glittering.

Suddenly, Leiko-san noticed Ami. "Hi there, Mizuno-san. Oh, don't worry about this."

Ami blinked yet again, and then placed a hand on her forehead. "Uhnn…"

Ami looked up. The Sailor Senshi with flowing aquamarine hair was playing a haunting tune on a crystal violin. Shining music notes streamed out from it and wrapped around Leiko-san. The Senshi with black hair and the Senshi with beautiful silky jade-green hair, each pointed their staffs at the imprisoned Leiko-san.

Ami continued to reel. Then, her mind went blank.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ryo stood alone at the newspaper stand, searching for job openings. He circled a few ads in the job listings section where he could make decent wages, but having a fired detective as part of your resume is a huge disadvantage.

He trudged to each place that he marked off.

"Sorry, son, you need more experience."

"Eh, no."

"Are you kidding? This ain't for you."

"You're a registered chef? No? Forget it!"

Ryo sighed after shuffling out of a restaurant. Nothing. Then, he stopped.

"Where did Yumi go?" he wondered aloud. He checked the time on his cell. "She should've met me by now…"

Ryo tried to think of where she'd gone, and decided that Yumi probably went back to her apartment to change her clothes- she was so upset last night… He went back to his own apartment to get his car to go to her home.

As he drove, something he couldn't get out of his head was an image of a blue-haired woman…

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So," Galaxia sneered, "You've shown yourselves."

Sailor Pluto and Sailor Saturn continued to point the Garnet Rod and Silence Glaive at her.

"Do not move," Pluto whispered. "You wouldn't want me to use _Dead Scream_, would you?"

Galaxia smirked. "Go ahead."

Pluto and the other Senshi were taken aback.

"Who are you?" Chibi Moon demanded.

"Oh, no one _you'd_ know…" Galaxia broke Sailor Neptune's music rope. She turned away. "Make this worth my time."

She turned back to see Sailor Mercury standing watching them, though very unsteadily.

_Perfect_, Galaxia thought. "Ah, Mizuno-san! Why don't you come over here?"

Her eyes blank, Mercury shakily walked over to Galaxia. She paused, and slowly knelt on one knee before Galaxia.

All five Senshi's eyes widened.

Sailor Mercury slowly faced them. Her eyes flashed, and she hurtled toward them.

Sailor Chibi Moon leapt out of Mercury's way. "A-Ami-chan!"

Sailor Neptune gasped when Mercury grabbed onto Sailor Saturn, thrashing around and yanking her thick black hair. Neptune hurriedly played her crystal violin again.

"_Submarine Violin Tide!_"

Once again, a stream of music spilled from the violin and, this time, bound Sailor Mercury.

Galaxia laughed gleefully as Mercury broke the rope with ease like Galaxia. Mercury went for Sailor Pluto and grabbed her Garnet Rod.

Galaxia continued to laugh as Pluto and Mercury struggled.

She didn't see Sailor Uranus run stealthily behind her holding her Talisman, and Chibi Moon holding her scepter.

"_Space Sword Blaster!_"

"_Starlight Honeymoon Therapy Kiss!_"

Galaxia yelled when the sword stroke split the pavement and from the force of Chibi Moon's attack. She fell in a heap, her fake violet hair all over her face. Galaxia felt her power weaken slightly.

Sailor Mercury turned toward Galaxia and released Pluto's rod. She swayed, and crumpled to the ground.

"Damn you, Sailor Senshi!" Galaxia spat. She stood, and with a quick turn, disappeared from the fray.

Galaxia reappeared in space, in her sailor-fuku, and sat on an asteroid, thinking. She was defeated, but just this one time. She would get her vengeance. Soon.

She smiled. An idea was forming…

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"…mi-chan. Ami-chan!"

Ami slowly opened her eyes. There were people, watching her. She was on the hard concrete of a back alley.

"Wha?" She sat up quickly, and then gasped.

Five Sailor Senshi stood in front of her.

The Senshi with pink hair asked, "Are you okay, Ami-chan?"

"…How do you know my name? Who are you?"

The Senshi with boyish hair said, "You're one of us- you're Sailor Mercury."

"I'm a… Senshi?"

Ami stood and slightly turned toward them.

"…I don't… believe you."


	10. Two Dilemmas

Yay update! And yay, one more thing to do and I'm done with school! So I can write more, yay! Thanks for waiting! -Tesh

_Chapter 9- Two Dilemmas_

That night, Ami stumbled into her apartment. Her breath came out in spurts. Ami clutched her chest. Her heart was beating rapidly. What was _wrong_ with her?

"Uhh…" Ami clutched her stomach. She blanched, and ran to the bathroom.

When she shakily came back to the living room, she looked around and plopped onto her favorite armchair, thinking. She didn't remember anything of what had happened after she was stuck in traffic…

She fiddled with her cell phone. She had several missed calls. From "Usagi" again. She scowled.

Ami grabbed her TV remote and the TV screen came to life. The news was on…

"Ah, _no!_" Ami cried. Somehow, she forgot to go to the crime scene! Ami hung her head in shame.

She watched further and discovered that more than a quarter of the citizens of Tokyo were acting hostile. The police were having a hard time restoring order. Ami watched the grim report with worry in her eyes.

She worried that she might lose her job. Running away from her duty first and then forgetting her duty later were serious. She hoped that Chief Kana would forgive her for her slipups.

Ami turned off her television and got ready for bed. Halfway through brushing her teeth, nausea set in again. She now had a pounding headache. Sleep… Yes, sleep would help her feel better…

She awoke the next day bright and early, fully rested. However, as soon as she climbed out of bed, nausea returned to her yet again, and her mind reeled. She returned shaking from the bathroom once again.

Ami managed to change and get to work. When she arrived, her boss seemed to have forgiven her. That is, he seemed so stressed that perhaps he even forgot about her. She was assigned to patrol Juban.

She climbed out of her cruiser and was immediately forced to restore order, protecting a married couple from a rampaging, frightened crowd. After that, she patrolled the streets, occasionally having to use her gun as a reinforcement of her occupation. She never fired though- she believed that the bullets were reserved solely for extremely difficult individuals.

Ami felt a presence behind her, and her police instincts took over. She whipped around and pointed her gun, her hands steady, at… a woman her age.

She was a petite woman with golden hair. Her hair was in an unusual style- two buns on each side of her head… They reminded Ami of odango. Something about her made Ami's mind soupy.

"…Ami-chan?"

"Who…?"

"It's Usagi. Your friend Usagi."

Once again, Ami grew angry. "Usagi, eh? I told you to leave me alone."

The woman's cerulean eyes shone brightly and a sparkling tear slipped down her cheek. "Ami-chan, please…"

"I said-"

"It's Leiko-san, isn't it?"

Ami's eyes widened. "Leiko-san? What're you-"

"Chibi Usa and the others told me. Leiko-san, she-"

"I've had enough of this, Usagi," Ami said angrily. She turned and marched away to continue with her duty.

Ami didn't hear Usagi pull out a communicator and say, "It's what we thought. Ami-chan had her memory taken, and Leiko-san's behind it."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ryo arrived at his girlfriend's apartment building. He entered and pushed the intercom button.

"Yumi?"

All he heard was the buzzing drone of the intercom. He called a few more times.

"Where could she be? I thought she was gonna meet me…"

Ryo thought for a minute or two. Maybe something happened to her? After all, Tokyo was becoming a dangerous place… That thought chilled him, and his resolve deepened. He had to find her. He wanted to hold her, make her feel safe, take care of her…

Then, another image of a blue-haired woman floated in his mind. It was like a fly in his ear- it wouldn't go away. It was also like the image had remained in his mind from a long time ago. It was a strange feeling…

Ryo quickly pulled out his cell phone. He searched through his phonebook, and his heart fell. He didn't have Yumi's number…

He sighed and shuffled out of the building. He climbed into his car. He had been out all day- he needed rest. But Yumi… He had to find Yumi.

"Sleep will have to wait," he muttered to himself. "I gotta find her."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Still floating in space, Galaxia laid back on the same asteroid, pondering. She had several ideas in mind.

Of course, she was pursuing Sailor Mercury's memories first. Next on her list was Sailor Mars: she would fool her by disguising herself as a fellow shrine priestess. The foil for Sailor Jupiter would be the 'new employee' for her shop, and Venus was easy- disguise herself as a pop idol. The Outers and Chibi Moon would be dealt with right after the Inners. The ultimate goal was the death of the most powerful Senshi, the one who seemed to love all- Sailor Moon.

_Why_ did she love all? The universe, and this world, especially, was full of corruption. Natural disasters, manmade destruction, and universal wars were everywhere.

"Cheh," Galaxia said.

Then… She thought about Urawa. She still planned to use him to kill Sailor Mercury. She wanted Mercury annihilated because…

Because…

Galaxia's transparent cheeks flushed. Because she wanted him for herself. She wanted… Ryo… for herself.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

After Usagi left, Ami swayed, unsteady. She couldn't stand still without feeling dizzy. She grew frustrated. She had a job to do.

Gradually, the sun left and the moon rose. The full moon looked beautiful tonight. Seeing it warmed Ami's heart, and the nausea dissolved. She wondered why… She finished her duty for the day, after one last incident involving an older man harassing a high school girl, who was trying to get away from an attack. Ami sighed. When would this mess end?

She entered the TPD and once again stumbled into her boss. The chief looked absolutely terrible. His gray hair looked grayer than usual, his gentle eyes had deep bags under them, and he was muttering to himself.

"Are you okay, Chief-san?" Ami asked with concern.

Chief Kana looked up and gave her a weak smile. "Don't worry about me, Mizuno."

Ami smiled back. "Just take care of yourself, okay?"

"Sure."

Ami said goodbye to her boss and left for home. As she drove, she thought back to Usagi. Why did she feel fuzzy when she thought of this woman? Ami was a little creeped out when Usagi had said she was Ami's friend. Why would she say that to a total stranger? Ami frowned as she pulled into her apartment's garage. Up the elevator she went, and she stepped into her home.

A half hour later, she was in her bed, ready to doze off. Once again, an image of Usagi drifted in her mind. Trying to rid herself of it, Ami turned over and forced herself to sleep.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nighttime fell, and Ryo still couldn't find Yumi. Defeated, he climbed back into his silver car and drove off. He had checked restaurants, parks, everywhere. He was getting anxious. What if she got attacked? He decided to park and do one last check around Juban.

Ryo walked through a park with his hands in his windbreaker- the summer day had turned into a chilly evening. He avoided the areas where the most attacks occurred, but then he determinedly began to explore those areas. Indeed, it was very foolhardy to go alone, but he had to find his girlfriend.

He was just about to enter a problem area when a pair of sweet-smelling hands covered his eyes.

"Guess who?" said an oh-so-familiar female voice.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ryo turned to Galaxia and smiled. "Yumi!"

"Yes, hi, Ryo-chan." Galaxia kissed him on the on the cheek.

"Where were you?"

"I was at a shrine praying for a new job," Galaxia invented.

"Ah, I see. I'm so happy to see you!"

Ryo hugged Galaxia, and she felt safe in his arms.

"So… What shall we do?" Galaxia asked.

"I don't know. But, we're in this together, so we have to continue to try to find a job."

"Actually," Galaxia purred sweetly, "I have an idea…"


	11. Mystify Your Mind

Author's Note: The title of this chapter is named after a certain screensaver on Windows PCs. I just love the screensaver's name. : ) Also, yes, Mamo has an actual attack in the manga- no roses for him. Also, apologies for not updating in a while.

_Chapter 10- Mystify Your Mind_

Ami walked out of her apartment on Saturday, wearing a casual ensemble of a loose skirt and blue-stripped blouse. She was off-duty, and wanted to clear her head of work and Usagi. She stepped down the street carrying her sports bag. A trip to Juban's gym would take her mind off things.

As she walked, small riots broke out. Her fellow officers enforced peace to the best of their ability. Ami watched Officer Kin lead people to safety from a wild-looking man, and she smiled, happy that her team was doing their best.

Ami pushed the gym door open and instantly smelled iron and sweat. She changed in the little women's changing room into a sweatband, cutoff top, and fitting shorts. _ It's funny_, she thought with a smile, _that studious me back in junior high would be working out at age twenty-two._ She had to exercise for her job, especially if she had to chase someone, so she had a toned body.

She went to the treadmills and started to run.

"...Ami-chan?"

Ami turned. A tall woman with a brown ponytail was staring at her from the opposite treadmill. Ami stopped running.

"W-Who are you?"

"Ami-chan, it's Makoto. Mako-chan."

Immediately Ami glared. "You don't have anything to do with 'Usagi,' do you?"

"Am-"

"Listen!" Ami yelled, causing the people in the gym to stare. "I don't know who you people are and what you want with me! I want you to-"

But whatever Ami wanted Makoto to do was lost, because Ami collapsed.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Wow, Yumi," Ryo said admiringly, "I can't believe how you managed to get a job so quickly."

They were in Yumi's apartment. She stood before him in a pure white dress, coat, and shoes- a nurse's outfit.

"It was nothing," she replied. "For some reason they hired me on the spot!"

"It's awesome, babe," Ryo said proudly, hugging her. Yumi giggled.

She placed her hands on Ryo's face, framing it. "Come with me, Ryo-chan? I'm sure it'll be all right."

Ryo smiled. "Sure."

They gathered their things and left for the hospital. As they traveled, Yumi said, "Don't worry, Ryo-chan. You'll find a job too."

"I'll keep looking," Ryo replied, determined.

Yumi smiled, and then gazed at him.

"What is it?"

"Oh nothing... It's just... I'm glad I met you."

Ryo pulled to the side of the road and turned to her. He kissed her softly, and said, "Me too."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Galaxia shivered a little after Ryo kissed her. His kisses were so... She couldn't describe them. She wanted to pull him closer and kiss him harder, but she decided against it. She wanted to be gentle from then on.

She wanted to make sure that Ryo never questioned her, but he trusted her, so it wasn't necessary. Galaxia pondered. She took Ryo's memories from him each time he began to show signs of awakening, though hesitantly, such as the time where her disguise was almost revealed when they woke up in bed together earlier. Why? Galaxia closed her eyes, and ignored the turmoil growing within her troubled heart. As long as she remained with Ryo, regardless of any growing trouble, everything would be all right. She was sure of it.

"Here we are!" Ryo said, pulling into the large hospital. Galaxia walked in with Ryo by her side. They entered the main waiting room.

"Hello, Dr. Keitaro," Galaxia said sweetly.

"Hello, Leiko-san. How are you?" the doctor replied. His gray eyes were a little blank. Of course, Galaxia had taken some of his memory.

The small talk could not continue as another nurse rushed into the room. "Doctor! We have an emergency!"

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Ami-chan!_

_What's wrong, Nichogi-san?_

_My friend! She-_

_Don't panic, Nichogi-san! I'll call the ambulance!_

Lights shone brightly through her closed eyes. She heard a loud siren- perhaps it was a police siren?

_Ami-chan..._

_Please don't cry, __Nichogi-__san, she'll be okay._

_I have to call Usagi!_

Usagi... Why did that name keep coming up? Her blood boiled.

The screeching of tires stopped, and then there was a rolling sound. Was she moving?

More bright lights assaulted her eyelids. The rolling stopped, and the creak of a door could be heard.

Several voices, including Makoto's, started talking. She couldn't make out what was being said.

A few seconds later, she heard the door close, and voices again.

_She's in a coma. You know what to do._

The sound of air filled her ears and nostrils. Was there something covering her face?

Then, time must've passed, for she felt something soft underneath her. A bed...?

She felt several things attached to her arms. What were they?

She heard sniffling and felt something warm on her left hand.

_Ami-chan..._

That voice... It sounded familiar.

She opened her eyes.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"What's the emergency?" Yumi cried.

Quickly, the doctor led her to the ER, leaving Ryo to stand in the room alone. _I wonder what happened? _he thought worriedly. He didn't see Yumi for a few hours, so he waited in the reception room, reading magazines.

Finally, Yumi returned. Ryo stood up quickly. "Is everything okay?"

"Yes, it's fine," Yumi said. "A young woman named Ami Mizuno was in a coma."

"...Mizuno?"

Yumi nodded.

Ryo's mind reeled. "Ahn..."

Yumi smiled. "What's the matter, Ryo-chan?"

Ryo clutched the edge of a chair, shaking.

Yumi raised an eyebrow. "I can get you to a doctor. Well, we _are_ in a hospital," she laughed.

Ryo didn't hear her. His eyes flashed.

"Where... is she?"

Yumi smiled again. "I can take you there. Follow me, okay?"

Ryo followed Yumi down the halls, and didn't notice that her hair was suddenly longer and blonde. She knocked on a door and let herself and Ryo in.

Ryo entered a room with four women surrounding a blue-haired woman, who was in bed. The sight of her caused Ryo to sway.

"Nurse Ohara-san, is Ami going to be okay?" asked a pregnant woman with short blonde hair.

"Of course," Yumi replied. Ryo didn't stop to think what the reason was for the pregnant woman to call Yumi by a different name.

The four women noticed him. "U... Urawa-kun?" they said.

"Eh?" Yumi said. "Who are you, and why are you here?" she asked quickly, jet-black eyes narrowing dangerously.

"What...?" Ryo asked, thunderstruck.

"I'll be right back, 'Urawa-kun,' and I expect you to be gone." Yumi turned, and exited.

Ryo was about to call Yumi, but he began to shake uncontrollably.

"Are you all right, Urawa-kun?" the raven-haired woman asked.

The golden-haired woman with her hair styled in buns gazed at him with her brow furrowed and mouth slightly open, her cerulean eyes piercing into his.

Ryo stopped shaking and stepped toward them. They all stared at him as he looked down at the woman in bed. The woman in bed gazed back at him through blue-black eyes, confused.

Ryo's eyes flashed again, and without warning he grabbed the woman around her waist. He crashed through the hospital room window and pelted away into the night, the blue-haired woman's eyes wide with shock.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Galaxia watched the scene through the slightly open door and smirked. Perfect. She pushed the door open and let out a false shriek of fear.

"What... What happened!"

Quickly, the Senshi explained what had happened. Galaxia gave fake gasps through the tale. When they finished, Galaxia shut the door quietly.

"We have to do something!" Sailor Venus cried.

"But what?" Sailor Jupiter replied desperately.

Sailor Moon closed her eyes in sorrow, but then they snapped open without warning. She whipped around to face Galaxia.

"It was you... Leiko-san!" she said fiercely.

Galaxia blinked. "...Excuse me? I don't know wh-"

"The Silver Crystal told me, you evil woman! Transform everyone!" Sailor Moon called out her transformation phrase and the rest, except Venus, followed suit.

"_Burning Mandala!_" Sailor Mars cried, releasing a jet of white-hot flames at Galaxia. Galaxia dodged, and glared.

"What are you _doing?_"

The Senshi ignored her, and Sailor Jupiter used_ Oak Evolution_ to blind her. Galaxia shielded herself from the sharp leaves with difficulty, and fell backwards toward the broken window. Jupiter dashed toward her, grabbed her, and just like Ryo and Mercury, landed out of the hospital room window.

"Get- off- me!" Galaxia snarled. Jupiter refused to let go, and tightened her grip on Galaxia's arms.

Sailor Moon and Sailor Mars leaped out of the window and joined Jupiter in the empty hospital parking lot.

Galaxia bowed her head, her fake blonde hair covering her eyes. Suddenly, her head snapped up.

"Foolish girls."

Galaxia closed her eyes as gold light blasted through the nighttime sky. The light knocked the Senshi backwards, and they looked on in horror as Galaxia revealed herself.

Sailor Moon glared. "Galaxia... I thought so."

The spirit of Galaxia smirked, said nothing, and pointed at them to perform her memory-extracting power.

"_Flame Sniper!_"

Galaxia scowled and easily knocked the fire arrow away.

"_Sparkling Wide Pressure!_"

Again, Galaxia knocked the attack away.

"How can you be this strong?" Sailor Moon shouted. "I defeated you!"

"Ah. Be careful where you are in the Galaxy Cauldron, brat."

"What's that supposed to mean?" cried Sailor Moon.

Galaxia sneered and pointed at them again. This time she would not miss.

"_Tuxedo the Smoking Bomber!_"

Galaxia was blasted off her feet and landed in a heap. A dashing man in a tuxedo had come out of nowhere, stepping in front of the Senshi.

"Mamo-chan!" Sailor Moon cried.

Tuxedo Kamen stood protectively in front of Sailor Moon. "Stay where you are," he said threateningly.

"Feh. Get out of here, you pathetic excuse for a man. It was oh-so-easy to use you at the Cauldron..."

"Keep talking and I'll break your face," Jupiter growled.

"Enough! I did not come here for nothing!" Galaxia shrieked. She stood, a little shakily, and pointed at them once again.

She was not quick enough. "_Starlight Honeymoon Therapy Kiss!_" Sailor Moon shouted fiercely.

Galaxia flew through the air and landed hard on her back. Even though she was a spirit, Sailor Moon's attack hurt as if Galaxia were flesh and blood. She cursed, and felt her power decreasing significantly.

"_Fire Soul!_"

"_Supreme Thunder!_"

"_Tuxedo the Smoking Bomber!_"

"_Crystal Power... KISS!_"

All four attacks combined and spiraled toward Galaxia, gathering speed. She was unable to block, and...


	12. Recovery and Resolve

1/20/08 Yep I'm still alive. I'm so sorry for the long wait again. My editors and I have been busy. I have some news- I'm transferring colleges to study writing this January, so expect more chappies and other fics soon! -Tesh : )

_Chapter 11- Recovery and Resolve_

--x--

_The sound of pounding footfalls assaulted her ears and sharp branches tore at her arms and legs. She was tucked under the arm of what she believed was a man. She struggled, but he had her in a vice-like grip. She was scared._

_She didn't know where she was. All she saw were dark trees leering at her, and that her arms and legs were bleeding._

_She was flung onto the ground like a rag doll. __Now she could see scarcely make out that she and her captor were in a forest clearing due to the gold light radiating from his hands. __The man who had taken __her__ there looked familiar, and __th__e look in his piercing dark eyes frightened her. He raised his hand, and a gold light blasted through the trees, knocking the surrounding trees down. They fell straight towards her. She screamed and covered her head with her arms._

_"_Flower Hurricane!_"_

_A barrage of pink flower petals zoomed by her right ear and swirled around the falling trees. The petals closed in on the trees and devoured them, sending dust flying everywhere._

_She turned, and she could make out in the dark a green-suited Sailor Senshi. A red-suited Senshi was right behind the taller Senshi._

_"_Burning Mandala!_" A jet of flames blazed toward the captor and-_

--x--

Ami's eyes popped open. Instantly she tightly closed her eyes shut again, but she didn't smell fire or her own blood. The young woman looked up and gasped.

Senshi... Eight Sailor Senshi and a pregnant woman were standing before her in a hospital room. Ami looked down. Her arms and legs were bandaged. She felt a sharp pain on her face and touched it with her hand- a gash was on her forehead, also bandaged. She must've... blacked out from the grueling ordeal...?

"Ami... Are you all right?" the Senshi with long raven hair asked.

Ami could only continue to stare at them, awestruck. They stood proudly, and seemed to resonate with power from the planets above.

The Senshi that she immediately realized was Eternal Sailor Moon extended her hand to Ami. Ami hesitated, but held Sailor Moon's hand.

"_Silver Moon Crystal Power_," Sailor Moon whispered.

"_Mars Crystal Power..._"

"_Jupiter Crystal Power..._"

"_Uranus Crystal Power..._"

"_Neptune Crystal Power..._"

"_Pluto Crystal Power..._"

"_Saturn Crystal Power..._"

"_Pink Moon Crystal Power..._"

"_Sailor Planet... POWER!_" all of the Senshi cried.

A kaleidoscope of colors spiraled from above toward Sailor Moon and Ami's clasped hands. The colors shot through Ami's arm, directly to her heart. Her back arched as she felt an overflow of white-hot power. It was so strong that a scream was about to escape her lips, but before she could the power subsided. Ami collapsed onto the pillows, panting. Then she looked down at herself.

Her wounds were gone and her hospital gown had faded away. In its place was a spotless blue Sailor uniform. She looked up. The Senshi were smiling at her. No. Not the Senshi... her friends.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--x--

_A jet of flames blazed toward him and engulfed him. Expecting to smell smoldering flesh, he shut his eyes and braced himself, but he did not feel the impact. He opened his eyes and gasped._

_He could see the bright orange and red flames licking at his body, but he didn't feel them. An ebony-haired woman in a red sailor suit stood nearby panting with her arms extended, as if she was controlling the fire. The flames illuminated a tall green sailor-suited woman who held a bundle in her arms, and he realized it was another woman. She was so battered..._

_The red-suited woman dashed at him without warning and struck the back of his neck. He swayed, and collapsed._

--x--

Ryo opened his eyes and found himself in his apartment alone. When he sat up, a barrage of images swirled through his mind- a woman's bleeding arms, a broken window, a blonde nurse... He couldn't make any sense of them.

Then he noticed that Yumi wasn't there. _Again?_ he thought, a little angrily. Then he thought of Yumi being attacked, and an icy tendril of fear slipped through his being. She had to be in danger- he could feel it.

He grabbed his keys and coat and took off through the slowly lightening sky.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

--x--

_She was unable to block, and an explosion shook the parking lot._

_"__Ha!" Sailor Moon cried triumphantly. "Good work, guys! Now find Ami-chan and Urawa-kun, okay?"_

_"__Right!" Mars and Jupiter chorused in unison, and they ran off._

_When Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Kamen were alone, they surveyed the area, looking for her. She forgot that I am a spirit__, Galaxia thought gleefully, lazily floating above them._

_When Sailor Moon's back was turned, Galaxia hurtled toward her, holding her own Sailor Crystal, the Sapphire Crystal, aloft. Her crystal's power shot straight at Sailor Moon's wings._

_Sailor Moon went rigid as her beautiful wings began to melt. Each pure white feather peeled off and spun away into the nighttime sky. Tuxedo Kamen yelled in fury and sent another attack Galaxia's way, which she dodged. Sailor Moon cried out in pain as her wings continued to disintegrate._

_Galaxia, thinking that she was victorious, turned to disappear from the fray, but once again she was not quick enough._

_Sailor Moon's gold crescent moon on her forehead gleamed as she touched her broach. A silver light beamed toward Galaxia and pierced her. This time Galaxia went rigid as Sailor Moon's power cut into her own. The gold-haired Senshi fell to her hands and knees, panting. She glared at Sailor Moon._

_"__Just kill me now, if you're so powerful," Galaxia spat._

_"__No."_

_"__What?"_

_"__I will not kill you, even though you're my enemy."_

_"__Then be prepared to die then, _Moon Princess_," Galaxia growled. She used that moment to leave before Sailor Moon could respond._

--x--

Galaxia slowly walked to the Memory Room in her apartment. The time was now. She entered, the boots of her sailor-fuku echoing loudly in the cavernous space.

The gold-haired Senshi raised her hand. The swirling balls of light slowly lifted off their marble pillars and began to spiral around her, gathering speed. Galaxia felt the power of each and every one of the earthlings' memories, and their empty thoughts were now the result of her growing power. As the lights continued to spin, Galaxia's sailor-fuku morphed into an intricately decorated suit of gold armor. After the lights returned to their pillars, she looked down at herself. The armor consisted of knee high boots, chain mail shirt and breastplate, gauntlets, and an engraved headband. The most important addition to her newfound armor was a beautiful sword- gold plaited and jewel-encrusted, with planets engraved on the silver hilt.

The best addition above all was that she was flesh and blood.

Galaxia smirked, and closed her eyes. She wanted to end this. She wanted revenge. She wanted to skip all the other useless Senshi and destroy Eternal Sailor Moon with her bare hands. A manic laugh escaped her flushed lips, and she put the tips of her fingers to the sides of her head, ready to tell Sailor Moon to come and try to defeat her.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Welcome back, Mercury!" Usagi-chan said. Ami smiled, and then gasped. Usagi had winced in pain and Ami saw that her wings were gone.

"Wh- What did Galaxia do to you!" Ami exclaimed.

Usagi gave a weak smile. "I don't know." Chibi Usa held her mother's hand, her scarlet eyes full of pain.

"Galaxia will pay for this," Minako-chan growled.

Ami touched one of her star earrings and her mini computer faded into her hands. She quickly typed in facts and figures. Her friends waited with bated breath.

"I'm looking for Galaxia's energy," Ami informed them as her fingers roamed the keyboard. "Ah! I kn-"

Usagi held up a hand, silencing Ami. Her eyes went blank, and then she blinked.

"Galaxia," Usagi whispered. "She's waiting for us..."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ryo drove frantically. _I should've gotten Yumi's phone number!_ he thought.

His eyes widened. "My power!" he said aloud. He had never tried to use it while driving, but it was worth a try. The young man pulled over, closed his eyes, and felt the familiar sensation associated with his power. This time he kept his "screen" in his mind.

Yumi was in his vision- but, _was_ it Yumi? Her hair was long and gold, and was wearing gold armor. She held a long sword and was fighting a blue-haired woman in a Sailor Senshi suit. As they clashed, Ryo saw that the Sailor Senshi was losing. Then with a flash of gold, Yumi's sword rammed into the Senshi's chest. The blue-haired woman shuddered as blood blossomed on her uniform, and fell still.

"_No!_" Ryo shouted in horror. That woman... how could Yumi kill her? He shuddered at the mere thought. This steeled him to drive faster.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"That's right... Come to me, Sailor Moon," Galaxia breathed. She stood in the Memory Room, still surrounded by the balls of light, ready to kill all whom Sailor Moon held dear. Her sword glinted menacingly as she held it before her. Any minute now...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was hard, leaving Minako-chan behind, but there was just no way of having the leader of the Inner Senshi fight along their side when pregnant.

Ami and the rest of the Senshi bounded toward "Yumi's" apartment. As they ran, civilians watched, surprised from seeing their sailor-suited heroines running so frantically.

Ami shouted directions to the apartment to her comrades. "It should be here!" she called from behind her shoulder. Then she faced forward and gasped.

The apartment building was surrounded in gold light.

Ami stopped running and stared at the building, shuddering.

"What's wrong, Mercury?" Uranus asked, concerned.

"It's nothing. It's just... We should end this."

"Right!" her friends chorused, clasping hands.

_We're coming, Galaxia_, Ami thought, her face set.


End file.
